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COMR1GHT DEPOStt 



THE 

SCIENCE and PHILOSOPHY 

OF LIFE. 



To Live to Attain to the Development of our Higher 

Powers and Faculties, that we mat come into 

the Possession of Fullness of Peace and 

Plenty, of Abounding Health and 

Happiness here, and a never 

ending Eternity of Joy 

Hereafter. 

^/ 

By Edward H.^Cowles, D. P. 

Principal of the Portland Institute of 

Psychology. 



To Iyive, to Learn, to Do. 
To Ivove, to Have and to Enjoy. 



PRICE ONE DOLLAR. 



Published by the 

Portland Institute of psychology, 

portland, ore. 



"HE LtlJtAfVV o? 

COWORE3S. 

One Copy Rbcejvc* 

Aue. a 1903 

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COPY B. 



V 









Copyright by 

Edwaed H. Cowles, 

1903. 



Published by the 

Portland Institute of Psychology, 

The Marquam, 

Portland, - Oregon. 



Price One Dollar. 
Postpaid. 



To my Lifelong Friend, 
E. C. D. 
Whose staunch and steadfast friendship 
in times of severe trial and diffi- 
culties has ever been a 
source of encour- 
agement and 
Strength, 
This volume is affectionately 
Dedicated. 



CONTENTS. 

Chapter Page 

I. The Way We Live 21 

II. Life is What We Make It 31 

III. How Can I Help Myself ? 41 

IV. Truth, and Our Relation to it 51 

V. Thought, the Key-note of Life 63 

VI. Thoug-ht, its Character and Mode 

of Expression 73 

VII. Thoug-ht, its Qualities and the Laws 

Governing- its Transmission ... 81 

VIII. Thought, Attraction and Reproduc- 

tion 93 

IX. * Man, His Creation and Develop- 

ment 103 

X. The Dual Character of the Mind. . .117 

XI. The Conscious Mind 127 

XII. The Subconscious Mind 137 

XIII. The Subconscious Mind ; its Func- 

tions and Operations 149 

XIV. The Subconscious Mind; General 

Observations 163 



Chapter Page 

XV. Suggestion Defined, and the Way it 

Operates 179 

XVI. Suggestion Applied to Mental and 

Physical Disabilities 191 

XVII. Laws Governing in Every Sphere. .205 

XVIII. The Secret of True Attainment 217 

XIX. A Little Friendly Talk 229 

Parting 245 

Special Announcement to the Read- 
er of this Book 251 

Perfect Union 255 



THE MESSAGE. 

Trust thou thyself, believe that God hath given 
Something to thee which no man had before, 
That in thy message is some darkness riven 
Which, but for thee, were darkness evermore. 
There is a thing to tell, the world is waiting, 
'Tis thine to tell it, speak, for time is brief, 
'Twixt speech and silence stand no more debating, 
For Death unseen approaches like a thief, 
To steal the precious words, Man were the loser, 
Announce thy tidings : Would the master send 
A. sentient being,— God, the King, the Chooser— 
Into a strange new country to no end ? 
Dec. 17th, 1902. Isabel Riohey. 




There is a method and precision as well 
as a definiteness in which results follow cer- 
tain causes, in the external world, in our 
physical being, in our Thoughts and acts, 
and in the whole phenomena of life, which 
precludes the possibility of chance or co- 
incidence, Without going into a close anal- 
ysis of the phenomena of life, we can readily 
discover enough to impress us with the 
thought that back of all life-expression there 
must be Laws and fixed Principles which 
govern and control in all that comes to us. 

A closer analysis will convince us that 
this is a fact. That underlying all Life- 
expression there are Laws and forces oper- 
ating which at all times govern the results 
of what we think and do. When we come 
to recognize this fact, we also come to real- 



ize to some extent, of what vital importance 
it is that we should know and understand 
the sphere and operation of these Laws and 
forces, if we would intelligently shape life 
for ourselves and bring to us the things, the 
people and the conditions which we desire. 

I have no apology to offer for the appear- 
ance of this book. That which calls it into 
existence is the need, which has been made 
very apparent to me in my practice, for 
something which would give these underly- 
ing principles of life in plain and intelligi-. 
ble language, such as would admit of their 
being grasped and understood by the average 
person, together with the great importance 
of the subject and the vital bearing it has 
upon life in its every detail. 

This work was first undertaken with the 
view of being able to supply my patients 
with something which would give them the 
basic principles of what I teach them in my 
practice, in readable form that they might 
study and think for themselves, but as I 
have gone into the various subjects the field 
has constantly enlarged, each theme so 



growing in importance and variety of appli- 
cation, that I decided to publish it in sub- 
stantial book form in the hope that it may be 
the means of helping a larger number to a 
better and clearer undertanding of the real 
and true science of living. 

No attempt whatever has been made as to 
literary style. I have followed no beaten 
path and have made no effort to either imi- 
tate or differ from others, but have endeav- 
ored to express myself as clearly as possible 
in language which would best convey my 
meaning. 

No one can realize the shortcomings of 
this work more than I, but this has not de- 
terred me. I have had something to say 
and I have said it as best I could with the 
one desire and purpose in view — to help 
those who are seeking greater light and at- 
tainment. 

I have come in contact with people from 
a practical standpoint and what I have 
learned has come to me through practical 
experience and observation, and not through 
experimental work, valuable as that is in its 



way, hence the principles which I have 
stated are in the main such as I have proven 
and demonstrated in practical work. There 
are doubtless some propositions stated which 
you may question. I don't ask you to ac- 
cept them because of my statement, but I do 
ask that you will not reject them until you 
have carefully considered them and followed 
them out to their conclusion with the desire 
to get at the facts. 

Ideas and theories may be at times very 
nice and pleasant things to contemplate, but 
when we come to the serious problem of life, 
we want vital practical truths and facts, as 
near as we can get them — something which 
will admit of practical application and of 
bettering our condition. 

The scope and application of these Laws 
and Principles is so vast and varied that it 
has been impossible to avoid what may, at 
times, seem like repetition, but by attention 
it will be seen that while a statement itself 
may in a measure be repeated, its applica- 
tion is different. 

We are just learning. While we think we 



have much truth — and we have — yet when 
we measure what we have with what is yet 
attainable — when we measure our present 
attainment in the light of the vast fields of 
wisdom and knowledge of which we get an 
occasional glimpse, we can but feel that we 
"know in part." And this should stimulate 
us to desires for the greater knowledge 
which is yet beyond us. "Veil after veil 
will lift, but there must be veil upon veil be- 
hind." The field is just being entered and 
is practically unexplored and the one who 
enters with the sincere desire for greater 
wisdom and knowledge, for a higher attain- 
ment and development and for a freer and 
fuller expression of the Soul life which is 
within, will indeed reap a harvest of the 
richest fruits. 

Let no one think that these transcendent 
truths are to be grasped or made available 
by the mere reading or through an intellect- 
ual perception of the truth. The greate: 
the value possessed by a thing, the greater 
the effort required to obtain it. If you de- 
sire to know these things, you will have to 



study them and think and reason for your- 
self. You will not find everything "spelled 
out/ 5 While the temptation has often been 
great to elaborate the various thoughts and 
principles stated, I have endeavored to be 
as breif as is consistent with the clear state- 
ment of the principles involved, leaving the 
reader to follow them out to their conclusion 
and application, hence this will be found to 
be more of a text book, or series of instruc- 
tions, rather than a book for casual reading. 
I wish also to say that I am bound by no 
creed, sect nor school. I am a simple 
searcher after truth, for its own sake, and 
have no theories, or philosophies, or party 
views or beliefs to uphold. Truth is Truth. 
At times we may find it in bad company, 
and we may have to do a good deal of sifting 
in order to separate the wheat from the 
chaff, but this should not deter us from seek- 
ing it, nor from perceiving and accepting it, 
no matter from whence it may come. This 
should be our attitude continually, and the 
more we open ourselves to the Truth, the 
more will it flow in to us. 



There are three classes who will read this 
book. 

First; those who read it as they read a 
novel, discerning what is upon the surface 
only, or failing entirely to understand. It 
may create a passing interest, but will pro- 
duce no perceptable effect upon their mindB 
or upon their lives. 

Second; those who read and become en- 
thusiastic, gaining a fair intellectual percep- 
tion of the Truth, which will for the time 
being, fascinate them, and they may go on 
in the same way, gaining that mental per- 
ception of these truths and principles which 
will enable them to talk about them and en- 
large upon their beauties and significance, 
and yet there be no perceptible effect upon 
their lives — no practical results. They are 
lacking in Eealization and consequently they 
cannot apply them to the problem of life. 

Third; there will be others who will not 
only read with care, with the simple and 
earnest desire to learn that which will enable 
them to better their every condition, but will 
study and analyze each statement or propo- 



eition with the view of getting its interior 
meaning and of understanding its signifi- 
cance and bearing. They will try to get the 
Thought which is back of the words em- 
ployed, for words are but symbols. They 
are in earnest in their desires to learn that 
which will aid them in making their lives 
more noble and beautiful, in attaining to 
greater success and happiness, to a higher 
state of physical health, and in building a 
foundation upon which they can stand 
throughout eternity. 

These will get the most out of this, or any 
book they read and they are the ones who are 
continually travelling in advance of the 
great mass of humanity who are content to 
drift along with the tide and winds. My 
desire is to help such as far as it lies within 
my power, hence instead of putting this out 
as a "Course of Instruction" and making a 
charge of five to ten dollars, as is quite cus- 
tomary, I have placed the nominal price of 
ONE DOLLAR upon it so that it may be 
within the reach of all. 

My work is done ; but as I review it I feel 



dissatisfied in a measure, in that I have not 
been able to elaborate and follow these vari- 
ous truths and principles to their greater 
application, or to bring their vital import- 
ance to that point of prominence which I 
desire, and which they merit, but space for- 
bids and I can only present this Philosophy 
of Life in epitome and leave the reader to 
follow the various propositions out to their 
conclusions for himself. 



The- 



Way 
We 

Live. 



CHAPTEE I. 

As we merge from the unconscious side 
of life, of infancy, to the consciousness of 
our surroundings, with increasing years, we 
are ushered into an atmosphere that is in- 
tensely material. First, that which attracts 
the eye appeals to us, then gradually we find 
ourselves coming under the dominion of all 
of the five physical senses. We are taught, 
and we come to believe, that only that is 
real which we can perceive through the 
senses, and as a consequence, we begin to 
shape our life, form our character and build 
our future in conformity with that which 
appeals to us through our material facul- 
ties. The natural tendencies of the Spirit- 
ual or Soul faculties are idealistic, but our 
education and environment lead toward ma- 
terialism. 

In the process of growth and unfoldment, 
no two are alike. There are all shades and 

23 



24 The Way 

degrees of development, both in the idealis- 
tic and in the material, dependent upon 
hereditary influences, education and envi- 
ronment, but the general trend of life as we 
all have to meet it, is towards an intense ma- 
terialism. We are accustomed to judge and 
measure everything from this standpoint, 
hence as we advance in life, our perception 
of all that pertains to it becomes increas- 
ingly colored by and through the natural 
tendencies of our objective or material facul- 
ties. 

The idea that the knowledge, beliefs and 
perceptions imparted to us by the five senses 
is all there is, and that they form the basis 
upon which we must build our lives, is en- 
tirely erroneous. These pertain to the mate- 
rial life, and are the ever changing, con- 
stantly vanishing and fleeting things which 
will evenually lose their identity; whereas 
the things on the unseen or spiritual side of 
life are the unchanging, the abiding, the 
absolute, and are far more real than that 
which we discern through the physical 



We Live, 25 

senses. In fact, the only things that are real 
may be said to pertain to the unseen or 
Spiritual realm. They alone will abide 
throughout eternity, and it is through fail- 
ure to discern these important and far reach- 
ing truths that we have grown to believe 
that nothing is real except that which can 
be demonstrated with mathematical preci- 
sion or perceived by the sensuous life of the 
material man. 

With the inbred belief that the only thing 
there is for us in this life is that which ap- 
peals to our material senses, through neglect 
the spiritual or soul side of our being has 
been lost sight of and in our development, 
the material has been cultivated at the ex- 
pense of the spiritual, hence we find that the 
true expression of the real or spiritual man 
has become dwarfed and fettered, and that 
instead of aspiring to that higher plane of 
living which would promote the growth and 
development of the best there is in us, we 
have been content to live in the material 
only, with the result that our spiritual f acul- 



26 The Way 

ties have become obscured and we have suf- 
fered the loss of the much that would have 
come to us, had we cultivvated the spiritual 
along with the material and taken a broader 
and higher view of life. 

The only way in which we can arrive at a 
true conception of the life we must live, is 
first of all, through coming into a true 
knowledge of God, His ways, His purposes 
and His Laws. The degree in which this is 
true of each will measure the degree of the 
real growth and development of our higher 
or Soul faculties. So long as we keep our- 
selves enveloped in the opaque blanket of 
materialism, so long will the spiritual facul- 
ties be obscured and we be groping in the 
dark — so long will we fail to comprehend 
infinite Law, infinite Wisdom and infinite 
Love. 

The first step in this direction is a recog- 
nition of the great truth that the things of 
the unseen or spiritual are more real and 
abiding than the seen or material things of 
life. We must rid ourselves of the idea that 



We Live. 27 

we are to be governed by the material and 
we must understand that in the degree in 
which we recognize and cultivate the spir- 
itual or Soul side of our being, will we come 
to be dominated by these higher forces and 
Laws, so that, instead of dominating us, the 
material will be made subservient to our 
needs and necessities. We must also recog- 
nize the fact that the five senses only give 
us relative knowledge and that things are 
not really what they seem. We must recog- 
nize and realize the great truth that on the 
material side of life, there is absolutely noth- 
ing but what is changing and vanishing — 
nothing permanent, while the things on the 
spiritual side are eternal and never fade — 
that they are the only things that never 
cease to exist. 

True growth and development of our 
"Soul Nature" is the only thing we can 
count as real, or as having permanent value. 
All advancement in this direction not only 
contributes infinitely to our abilities and our 
success in life here, but fixes that within us 



28 The Way 

which will abide forever. When we build 
from the material side of life, we are build- 
ing for time only; when we cultivate our 
higher, spiritual or Soul forces and powers, 
we are then building for both time and eter- 
nity, and in eternity alone we shall be able 
to correctly estimate or measure the value 
of these things. 

The second and most important step in 
the direction of development, is the recog- 
nition of the transcendent truth that your 
life and mine is the result, the product of 
our thoughts; that your life is, in its detail 
and entirety, the actual product of your past 
thoughts. Thought develops belief, and as 
we are controlled largely by our beliefs, it 
follows that thought is the all-important 
factor in shaping our lives, no matter from 
which way we may view it. To have our life 
right, we must first of all have our thoughts 
right, and in the degree in which we attain 
to a true conception of life and of the pow- 
ers and attributes of the Soul, shall we be 
able to formulate and attract to us thoughts 



We Live, 29 

which will he productive of the highest de- 
gree of success, of progress and of spiritual 
development. 

An intelligent understanding of the life 
forces which operate on hoth the spiritual 
and material plane, together with a knowl- 
edge and understanding of the powers and 
attributes of the Soul, will enable us to 
found our beliefs and acts upon Law and 
Truth. When thus founded, we come to see 
that the occurrences and incidents of life 
are not mere co-incidents, but are the result 
of the operations of Laws through which we 
either consciously or unconsciously attract 
to us that which comes to us, and life then 
becomes the intelligent application of those 
Laws to our own development and to the 
every detail of our existence. We come to 
live and act in harmony with these laws 
which are always operative, whether we will 
them to be or not, and instead of finding our 
condition in life one of discord and inhar- 
mony, we begin to realize the results of the 
practical application of wisdom, knowledge 



30 The Way We Live. 

and intelligence to the great problem of life, 
in bringing about harmonious conditions, 
and the realization of the higher ideals and 
conceptions of the Soul. 



Life- 



Is 

What 

We 

Make 

It. 



CHAPTEE II. 

How natural it has become for us to lay 
the blame of our mistakes and failures, ill 
health, unfavorable circumstances and con- 
ditions^ our unhappiness and our disappoint- 
ments in all the walks of life upon "fate !" 
How prone we are to attribute our ills and 
failures to some extraneous source or cause, 
when the real cause lies within oureslves ! 

Why is this ? Simply because we have be- 
come so accustomed to thinking that the 
causes which control and shape our lives are 
external and such as can be measured by the 
physical senses. We have become so used to 
considering everything from a material 
standpoint — perceiving only that which can 
be weighed in the balance of human intelli- 
gence or measured with the foot rule, that 
we have actually grown into the belief that 
the things which govern our lives and con- 

3 33 



34 Life is What 

trol our destiny are the external. We have 
lived such an intensely material life, and 
have become so thoroughly enveloped in the 
dark mists of materialism, that we have lost 
sight almost entirely of the higher, spiritual 
and more potential forces by and through 
which our lives and our destinies are con- 
trolled. 

There is no such thing as "fate" and 
nothing ever "happens." The cause of 
whatever comes to each lies within himself. 
God is the supreme fountain head of all 
power — all originates with Him and all 
flows from Him, but in the physical mani- 
festation or expression of the life of man, 
all force and power comes from within him, 
and to the failure to recognize this great 
central truth and act upon it, can be attri- 
buted all the failures, sickness, misery and 
unhappiness in the world. We have been 
working from circumference to center, and 
have never reached the center. When we 
shall reverse this process, and work from 
center to circumference, we will begin to 



We Make It. 35 

make substantial progress, and not until 
then. 

When we recognize the fact that a 
Thought proceeds every act and that the 
tendency of Thought is to express itself in 
action; when we perceive the great truth 
that everything exists first in the ideal or 
mental before it is manifested in the seen or 
material — that our physical being and our 
lives are but the outward expression of that 
which is within — that the material is but 
the expression of the spiritual; when we 
discern the transcendent truth that the un- 
seen is more real than the seen — that spirit- 
ual force transcends material force, then, in 
the degree that we come into an understand- 
ing and realization of these fundamental 
and transcendent truths, shall we see and 
understand how, and why it is, that the out- 
ward expression of life is but the manifes- 
tation of that which is within. 

Life is but the outward expression, the re- 
sult or product — the sum-total of our 
thoughts and our inner, spiritual state. This 



36 Life is What 

is absolutely true, and the moment we recog- 
nize this great truth, we shall see in it, the 
cause of whatever comes to us. We shall 
see also, that if circumstances and conditions 
are not to our liking, we have it within our 
power to change them. The longer I hold 
mjy hand upon the hot stove, the deeper the 
burn. If I wish to stop the burning what 
do I do? Simply change the conditions — I 
remove the hand from the stove. If the out- 
ward manifestation of life is not what I wish 
it to be, if my health, my success, my happi- 
ness, my circumstances and environment are 
not what I wish, what shall I do ? Why, I 
will change the producing cause — I will 
change my mental attitude and instead of 
allowing these things to control me, I will 
control them, because I know that the power 
to do this lies within myself. 

The causes which operate to control and 
fashion our life, our character and our devel- 
opment in any and all lines come from with- 
in and it is an absolute fact that each has it, 
within his own power to make his life in its 



We Make It 37 

entirety, just what he wills it to be. No one 
can say what my position or success in life 
shall be unless I allow it! Nothing has 
power over me, except as I invest it with 
power! I, and I alone am the architect of 
my own fortunes or misfortunes. I shape 
my destiny here and hereafter, and if my 
fortune and destiny are not what I would 
have them, I have no one to blame but my- 
self. I am responsible for what comes to 
me. 

But it is not simply the mental perception 
of these fundamental truths that is going to 
change our lives. It is the vital, conscious 
realization of Truth by the Soul that pro- 
duces effect. We must feel the truth of what 
we believe, and feeling it, we are bound to 
express the Truth in external action, in just 
the degree that it is realized in the Soul. 

Knowledge is power. This is true, and 
the important question is what are you going 
to do with that power which you acquire 
through knowledge? It matters not how 
much power you possess, if you fail to use it, 



38 Life is What 

or if you wrongly apply it. And here is the 
rock over which the many stumble. They 
perceive Truth mentally and they can ex- 
press the most beautiful thoughts and theo- 
ries fluently, but these have not become a 
deep-seated conviction in the Soul and there- 
fore fail to produce any perceptible change 
in their lives, simply because they do not 
act on the Truth they hold nor up to the 
light they have — they do not apply the pow- 
er they possess in a practical way. They are 
not real, because they are professing one 
thing and doing another. They are holding 
to a mental perception of truths which, if 
realized in the Soul, should be productive 
of the greatest results — which should make 
their lives all that is good and true, beauti- 
ful and noble ; and yet, they will harbor and 
send out, thoughts of malice, envy, jealousy 
and hatred — they will gossip about their 
friends and neighbors in seeming ignorance 
of the fact that such thoughts will surely 
harm others and react upon themselves. 
This does not affect the truth of these 



We Make It 39 

principles in any way whatever. It is simply 
a clear demonstration of the fact that such 
people are holding to a mental perception of 
Truth, of which they have never come into 
a conscious realization, and further, that to 
obtain results, Truth and Power must be 
used and applied to life-expression in a prac- 
tical way. 

Without any question, it is within our 
province to make life just what we will, but 
it cannot be done through a simple mental 
perception of Truth, nor can this be accom- 
plished in day or week. It is not enough 
that we have an intellectual perception of 
these most vital truths. They must become 
a deep-seated conviction in the Soul, in order 
that they may externalize themselves so that 
results will be manifested. Life is at all 
times just what we make it, and we are con- 
tinually, day by day, consciously or uncon- 
sciously, determining the character of that 
which shall shape our lives. 

All Spiritual and Natural Law is at all 
times operative, whether we will it to be or 
not. If we are in ignorance concerning these 



40 Life is What We Make It. 

Laws, and the way in which, they operate, we 
are on the negative side of them,' and they 
operate against us. If we understand them, 
and bring our lives into harmony with them, 
they operate for us, and we, in turn, can 
operate them, using them with intelligence 
in bringing about the conditions we desire. 

But great changes cannot be brought 
about in a day or a week. It is the patient, 
persistent effort, holding to a fixed purpose 
or ideal that enables us to achieve results. 
We must grow into these things, and in the 
degree in which we come into the conscious 
recognition and realization of these great 
and fundamental truths will they come to 
be a part of our very lives and natures and 
will then the more naturally express or ex- 
ternalize themselves. 

True growth and development is always by 
degrees. Nature teaches us this. It is step 
by step. You cannot reach the pinnacle of 
wisdom, knowledge and power at a bound. 
You must grow into it by degrees, and thus 
growing into it, you will prove your way and 
know by doing. 



How- 
Can 
I 
Help 
Myself? 



CHAPTER III. 

The most important and interesting ques- 
tion that will occur to each is "How can I 
help myself?" What are the means — what 
is the process by which I can develop my 
own latent powers and secure the greatest 
results from the ability which I possess? 
How can I change the current of my life, or 
attain to greater proficiency in the callng 
which I have chosen? 

The first step — the starting point upward, 
is to discover the prime or controlling factor 
in life. The second step, and the one that is 
equally important, is to begin at once to 
make earnest and practical application of the 
knowledge gained. True growth and perma- 
nent advancement comes through applying 
the truth, wisdom and knowledge we acquire 
to every detail of life as it comes to us day 
by day, and the degree in which we do this, 
will measure the degree of our progress and 

43 



44 How Can I 

development, our success and our happiness. 

It is not so much what I know, what power 
or ability I possess, as it is how much knowl- 
edge, power and ability I put into intelligent 
and practical use. I may possess the highest 
degree of power, but if I do not use it what 
does it profit me? It is not what we know, 
or what we possess, but what we do and use 
that shapes our lives, moulds our character 
and conditions our circumstances and envir- 
onment, as well as determines the measure 
of success which shall come to us. I would 
emphasize this one point; consider it well — 
it is not so much the knowing, as the doing. 

And knowledge comes only through expe- 
rience. On the material side of life, we can 
only know through the doing. All else is 
belief, which at times may amount to convic- 
tion, but until we actually do a thing, we 
cannot know it. When we know a thing 
through doing, that knowledge becomes ab- 
solute, in its degree. Then we know; belief 
has merged into knowledge and knowledge 
becomes power. 



Help Myself? 45 

First you have belief. Then, through do- 
ing, belief merges into knowledge and 
knowledge into power — then what? Apply 
that power intelligently in the working out 
of the whole problem of life. Unless used, 
it deteriorates. The only way you gain phy- 
sical strength is through proper exercise. 
The same is true here. Using the knowledge 
and power you have increases both. If you 
would have you must use and using you will 
have the more. "To him that hath shall be 
given." 

But remember one thing: All power is 
from within, out. You cannot get it from 
without. The forces are within you and are 
developed through use. I am not speaking 
of imaginary things, but of things that are 
vitally real. There are forces and powers 
latent within all, which if brought into ac- 
tion would most materially change the con- 
ditions of life and put one in a commanding 
position. There are laws governing the 
whole phenomena of life which are operating 
constantly, whether we will them to or not — 



46 How Can I 

whether we recognize them or not. If we 
learn these laws and understand them, we 
can then work in harmony with them — we 
can utilize them ourselves and thus intelli- 
gently shape the course of our lives. Other- 
wise, we are like a rudderless ship at sea. 

Without the earnest desire and fixed pur- 
pose, but little can be accomplished. The 
study of "The Science and Philosophy of 
Life" will avail you but little if you take it 
up as a pleasing philosophy and handle it 
as a child would a doll. The understanding 
of the problem of life on both the material 
and the spiritual plane: the discovery of the 
laws affecting the issues of life, which are 
constantly operative; the knowledge of that 
which is the prime factor in shaping life in 
its every detail, together with an under- 
standing of its varied and manifold opera- 
tions — these are things which are of vital 
importance and should command the most 
earnest and serious consideration of all. 

He who earnestly desires to get the best 
out of life; he who sincerely desires to get 



Helf Myself? 47 

the best out of himself and to attain to the 
development of those higher and finer facul- 
ties of the Soul which will bring him more 
and more into harmony with the Divine 
Mind, will take up the problem and study it 
with much care and patience, disabusing the 
mind of all pre-conceived thoughts and opin- 
ions as far as possible, and will seek truth — 
absolute truth, for its own sake, no matter 
from whence it may come. 

"How can I help myself?" The answer 
can be given in two words — learn and do. 
The first requisite is an earnest and sincere 
desire — determination. Second, read, study, 
think — learn. Third, act. As you get a 
truth, put it to a practical use at once — every 
time. And as you come into a knowledge 
and understanding of Thought, its power, 
its manifold qualities and the laws govern- 
ilng its operations begin at once to apply 
this knowledge to every phase of life. No 
one can do this and fail to succeed. These 
Laws are universal in their application and 
are positive in their operation under given 



48 How Can I 

conditions. Patient, persistent effort is 
bound to win. Be earnest, be forceful — at 
all times be sincere and true to your own 
Soul and success will crown your efforts be- 
yond your expectations. "Ask and it shall 
be given unto you; seek and ye will find; 
knock and it shall be opened unto you." 

But do not make the mistake of expecting 
to change and transform your whole life, 
your own being and the circumstances and 
conditions which surround you, in a day, a 
month or a year. It cannot be done. There 
are no "short-cuts" and here, "the longest 
way around, is the shortest way home." 
You must not be impatient, but rather let 
each new experience, the new knowledge and 
light, the new conquests of each day delight 
your own Soul and lead you to more earnest 
effort — to a more fixed determination, in 
shaping your life so that it will conform to a 
higher ideals and be productive of that 
which will abide with you throughout the 
eternal ages. Ever remember that all growth 
is by degrees, hence the need of patience and 



Help Myself? 49 

persistence. This is true growth and you 
will find that the further yon travel along 
the path of development, the more rapid will 
be yonr advancement. 

Two things are absolutely essential to the 
one who would attain to the highest develop- 
ment that is possible to man. First, a true 
and intelligent knowledge of God through 
His revealed word and by the Divine Spirit ; 
second, a true knowledge of self — of man. 
Upon these will depend the measure and sta- 
bility of our unfoldment and growth. 



Truth — 

And 

Our 

Relation 

To It. 



CHAPTER IV. 

The most momentous question ever pro- 
pounded by a human being, was that of Pi- 
late to Christ— "What is Truth?" 

What is Truth? From whence does it 
come? How can we attain it? God is 
Truth. He is the author and source of all 
Truth, hence all Truth is Divine and if we 
would have it, we must seek it where it is to 
be found. As all Truth is of God, so must 
it partake of His character and correspond 
with what He is. Here we have a test of 
Truth — whatever is not in keeping with the 
character of God, or fails to correspond with 
what He is, when it is traced down to a final 
analysis, can safely be rejected as untruth. 

In the subjects under cinsideration, we 
are dealing with the very fundamental prin- 
ciples of the whole universe, of all mani- 
fested life, as well as that which, at times, 
touches the very life principle itself, hence 

53 



54 Truth i and Our 

the importance of knowing the Truth and 
the absolute necessity of some standard of 
authority by whcih we can measure our be- 
liefs, our deductions and our conclusions — a 
standard by which we can measure and try 
all things, in order to determine what is 
Truth. 

Can the finite measure the Infinite ? Can 
Spiritual Truth be measured or compre- 
hended by the material faculties alone ? The 
conception and measurement of Truth is an 
attribute of the Soul, and is therefore, out 
of the range of the purely material faculties 
of the mind. 

We must distinguish between material and 
spiritual Truth, and yet, in the conception of 
material Truths, the mind cannot compre- 
hend them independent of the higher facul- 
ties of the Soul. The Law of the relation of 
numbers and the science of mathematics is 
discerned only through a faculty of the Soul, 
as has been clearly demonstrated, and inde- 
pendent of these higher faculties the mind 
could not grasp nor understand them. For 



Relation to It, 55 

the clear conception and right understand- 
ing of any and all Truth, we are dependent 
upon the faculties of the Soul. 

The knowledge and understanding of 
Truth as it is related to "The Science and 
Philosophy of Lif e" depends upon the devel- 
ment, and the clearness of perception of the 
Soul or spiritual faculties, for the reason 
that they are spiritual Truths and spiritual 
Truth can only be discerned by spiritual 
means. It is the office of reason to distin- 
guish and define, but the perception of 
Truth must, at all times, come through the 
Soul. 

Can man depend upon reason and logic 
for a knowledge of Truth ? How often does 
reason lead to conclusions, which the subse- 
quent discovery of some new fact proves to 
be a false one? The thinker soon discovers 
that he cannot rely upon either reason or 
logic at all times for a knowledge of Truth. 
They are too often based upon a false prem- 
ise and in consequence, we are led to false 
conclusions. 



56 Truth, and Our 

The necessity of some standard by which 
we can measure all things and determine the 
Truth is apparent. All Truth exists now as 
it ever has only awaiting our perception of 
it. It exists now, and will continue to exist 
throughout eternity, absolute and unchange- 
able. We cannot make Truth, neither does 
our belief or our conception of a thing make 
it Truth or untruth. Our belief has nothing 
to do with Truth itself, and it can in nowise 
be affected by it. 

We mistake our relation to Truth. It is 
never presented to us that we may decide 
upon its merits — whether it ought to be 
Truth, or whether we wish it to be so or not. 
Our desires, our wishes have nothing to do 
with it, and the sooner we recognize the fact 
that Truth exists entirely independent of 
ourselves, our wishes or our beliefs, and is 
absolute — beyond the power of man to 
change, augment or detract, the sooner will 
we attain that spiritual and mental attitude 
where the light of Divine Truth will shine 
in upon the Soul, so that we will be able to 



Relation to It. 57 

discern and grasp it, and order our lives in 
accordance with it. 

When man sets himself up as "Judge and 
Jury" over truth, when he assumes to decide 
what shall or shall not be Truth — when he 
tries to make Truth conform to his own 
ideas and wishes, he assumes a wrong atti- 
tude, shutting out the light, and he will find 
himself continually confronted with difficul- 
ties which he can in no way surmount. 

When he changes his attitude, and real- 
izes that Truth is absolute, that it is un- 
affected by his wishes, his desires or beliefs 
— that it exists entirely independent of him- 
self — when he realizes that Truth can only 
enter the "open door," and that the only way 
he can attain to an understanding of Truth 
is through seeking it for its own sake; when 
with earnestness of purpose and sincerity of 
desire he seeks to have his ideas and opinions 
conform to Truth, instead of trying to make 
Truth conform to them, then he has placed 
himself in the right relation to Truth, in 
correspondence with it, and will find it flow- 



58 Truth, and Our 

ing in, in the degree in which he opens him- 
self to it. 

Eeason we cannot rely upon, neither are 
we always in the position to determine 
whether that which is presented or that 
which comes to us is of the higher or Soul 
faculties or not, hence there is need of some 
authoritative standard whereby we can meas- 
ure things — some guide upon which we can 
rely in our search after Truth. 

As authority, as an exponent of Divine 
Truth and of all Law which is applicable to 
man as a spiritual being, as well as in his re- 
lation to material environment, the Bible 
stands by itself, pre-eminent. It has stood 
as the great beacon light of the world for 
centuries, and its truths are clearer and the 
brilliancy of its light is greater at this time 
than ever before. Never, since its earlier 
history, has its grand Truths been so opened 
up to man, never has its light shown with 
such undimmed brilliancy as at the present 
time. Some are just beginning to learn that 
in this priceless volume there are vast stores 



Relation to It. 59 

of hidden wisdom, knowledge and Truth 
which will be opened up to those who seek 
them — to those who place themselves in the 
right attitude to receive, and to such new 
light is constantly coming. Truth which 
has been hidden for centuries is being re- 
vealed and where darkness has overcast the 
horizon the effulgent light of eternal Truth 
is now shining. 

The earnest Student, the Thinker, the 
sincere Investigator will obtain more light 
and Truth concerning all questions affecting 
man in all his relations, from the Bible, than 
from any other source. There will be no 
missing links in the chain. There will be no 
problem pertaining to man in his relations 
to God which cannot be rightly solved 
through an understanding of God, His ways, 
His purposes and His Laws as taught and 
revealed therein. 

There is no Psychological fact known to- 
day, no principle or Truth concerning man, 
either as a spiritual being or as concerns him 
in his relations to his material environment 



60 Truth, and Our 

but what is presented, taught or exemplified 
in Scripture, and the more he appeals to it, 
the more he, in the right attitude seeks to 
wrest from it its secrets, the more will he 
come into a knowledge of Divine Truth. 

But we must approach any subject with 
an "open door." It will not do to attempt 
to prove or disprove any given theory or be- 
lief. Our attitude should be that of a simple 
searcher after Truth, with the earnest desire 
to know the real Truth, irrespective of what 
we have been taught, what we believe, or of 
our own preconceived ideas and opinions. In 
the degree in which we divest ourselves of 
these will we be successful in our search af- 
ter Truth, and finding it be able to compre- 
hend it. 

While using all the resources within our 
reach as helps, for the final Truth we must 
go to the fountain-head, the source of all 
Truth — God Himself, who is Truth. A book, 
an article or a statement from another be- 
comes useful to us, and powerful in the de- 
gree in which it serves as a medium or con- 



Relation to It. 61 

necting link between ourselves and the 
source of all Truth. They bridge a gap, and 
either through their own statements or 
through thoughts awakened in the mind 
place us in connection with that which is be- 
yond — the Infinite source of all Truth. In 
their place these things are right and are 
useful to us, but we should never lean upon 
them and they should never be allowed to 
supplant nor detract from the one grand 
source and authority of all Truth — the Bi- 
ble. 

The immense importance of knowing and 
understanding the Truth cannot be over- 
estimated when we consider that our lives 
are conditioned and formed through the 
Thought we entertain and hold, and that the 
product of life will at all times correspond 
with the character of the Thought, be it 
Truth or untruth. The deductions from this 
are simple and obvious. 

Believing a thing true or false does not 
make it so. But while our belief cannot 
affect the Truth, it can, and it does affect us 



62 Truth ) and Our Relation to It, 

— our lives, hence Truth is the one great 
cardinal principle or corner-stone upon 
which the true and fruitful life must be 
built. 

When Thought is based upon Truth it be- 
comes an invincible power. Eeinforced by 
wisdom and knowledge, impelled by a deter- 
mined will and strong desire nothing can 
stand before it. Truth is stronger than error 
and will prevail. 

In the degree in which your concepts of a 
thing are those of Truth, will your beliefs, 
your reasonings, your logic and your posi- 
tion become invincible and unassailable. 

"He that followeth me shall not walk in 
darkness, but shall have the light of Life" — 
and that light is Truth. 



Thought— 

The 

Key-note 

Of 

Life. 



CHAPTER V. 

Thought is the all-powerful, all-potent 
and never ceasing factor in the phenomena 
of life. Through it, and it alone, do we 
build our character, condition our circum- 
stances and environment, and shape our des- 
tiny, here and hereafter. Thought is back 
of every spoken word, every impulse and 
every act. It is the initial or primal cause 
of all outward expression, no matter what 
form that expression may take, and all out- 
ward expression will as surely take a form 
that corresponds with the character of the 
Thought which is back of it. Thought is the 
"Key-note" and the builder of life for each 
and every individual. 

It is impossible to measure the product of 
a Thought. Its possibilities are seemingly 
limitless. Life in its detail and entirety is 
absolutely moulded and fashioned by it. A 
Thought affects you individually, it corre- 



66 Thought, the 

lates other Thoughts of a like nature, it 
attracts Thoughts and things which are in 
correspondence with it, it reaches and influ- 
ences others for good or bad. It is the basic 
principle of all expression in material life; 
it is the agent through which all develop- 
ment, both spiritual and material is at- 
tained. 

Thought is not the light evanescent thing 
which the masses take it to be. We are com- 
ing more and more to realize that there is 
much truth in Prentice Mulford's statement 
that "Thoughts are things/' Thought is a 
substance, though not a material one, and a 
real thing. In expression, it is both force and 
motion, vibratory in its character. It travels 
with the rapidity of lightning, and for the 
fulfillment of its mission it is dependent 
upon the force and energy — the intensity of 
the desire that is back of it. 

When we come to realize the fundamental 
truth that a Thought precedes every act; 
that when followed up, if a Thought is 
wrong, the act will be wrong ; and that if the 



Key-note of Life, 67 

Thought be right, the act will be right, we 
shall see at once that we have a starting 
point from which every problem of life will 
be worked out in conformity with the charac- 
ter of our Thoughts — and this, whether we 
are conscious of it or not. We shall see that 
we are making life what it is, and that we 
have it in our power to make our lives what 
we will, through the intelligent exercise of 
this power — that we can even condition cir- 
cumstances and environment to a very great 
extent, for bear in mind that your life and 
mine are the result, the product — the sum- 
total of our past Thoughts, and that con- 
sciously or unconsciously, we have made our 
lives and the conditions and environment 
which surround us just what they are. 

We cannot get away from this great truth 
and the sooner we come into a vital realiza- 
tion of it, act in harmony with it and the 
laws operating in the realm of Thought, us- 
ing our intelligence in shaping our lives, the 
better it will be for us. The sooner then 
will our lives conform to some fixed purpose 



68 Thought, the 

or ideal, instead of being the result of aim- 
less drifting and the changing influence of 
others Thought upon us. 

Man is a "Free moral agent/' He has the 
power to choose, but does he exercise that 
power and choose, or does he, for the most 
part, drift with the tide ? Power counts for 
nothing unless we use it. Neither does wis- 
dom nor knowledge. It is not what we pos- 
sess, but what we use that counts for our 
good or bad. The way in which we use the 
power we possess and the Thought and intel- 
ligence applied in the use of it, will at all 
times determine the character of the results. 

Thought is pre-eminently the builder of 
life and character. It is a creative and con- 
structive force. Just as brick after brick 
laid in its place raises the building to its 
heighth, so are our lives and characters 
built up, Thought by Thought. Nothing 
has ever been accomplished by man, no pro- 
gress has ever been made in any direction 
without first being preceded by Thought. 
Before the first stone is laid in the founda- 



Key-note of Life, 69 

tion the building is complete in every detail 
in the mind of the architect, and as the char- 
acter and quality of the materials used will 
determine the character and quality of the 
building, so will the character and product 
of Thought conform to and correspond with 
the Thought itself. 

Everything exists first in the ideal or men- 
tal, before it is manifested in the material, 
and the tendency of Thought is to take form 
in action — to express or externalize itself. 
We constantly act from our Thoughts and 
here is where our power of choice comes in. 
Choose your Thoughts and you choose your 
acts; choose your acts and you determine the 
results, and what shall come to you. The 
law of correspondence obtains here. The re- 
lation and inter-relation of Thought to act — 
of the ideal to the material must never b6 
lost, sight of . 

But do not make the mistake of imagining 
that a few days or weeks right thinking is 
going to change the whole current and tenor 
of your life. Changes will begin at once, 



70 Thought, the 

but remember that your life, and you your- 
self, are the product of your lifelong 
Thoughts, and that it is the steadfast per- 
sistency in holding to a given line of 
Thought or purpose that produces the deep- 
est impressions and the desired results. All 
true growth is by degrees. This is a law 
of nature which we cannot get around. You 
build your life Thought by Thought, but 
you do not build it all at once. As you put 
yourself to right Thinking, you then by de- 
grees, begin to shape your life in conformity 
with these Thoughts and gradually as you 
persist in holding to right Thoughts and 
right ideals, will you find your whole life, 
your success, your conditions, your environ- 
ment and your friends conforming to the 
character of the Thoughts you are holding 
to. 

If your life, your circumstances, your suc- 
cess, your friends are not to your liking, 
commence at once to change the producing 
cause — change, your mental attitude. Think 
the Thoughts, build the ideals which you 



Key-note of Life. 71 

wish to be externalized. Think of things 
just as you want them to occur and put en- 
ergy, force, determination — intensity of de- 
sire, behind the Thought and ideal and 
gradually you will see the Thought taking 
form in action, and your ideals materializing 
themselves. Kemember, it is the Thinker — 
the trained Thinker, who puts force and en- 
ergy in his Thought who accomplishes much 
in the world. 

All Thought is bound to produce a result, 
in the degree in which it is not counteracted 
by your other Thoughts, and here you see 
the necessity of formulating right Ideals 
and Thoughts, and then holding to them 
firmly, with untiring persistency and faith. 
The more intense the Thought, the quicker 
and greater the results. Light, evanescent 
Thought does not reach far beyond the indi- 
vidual, and cannot produce any marked or 
specific external results, though it has a de- 
cided influence on the individual. 

Thought is the great "Key-note" of life. 
It is the great and all-powerful tool with 



72 Thought, the Key -note of Life. 

which man carves out his fortunes or misfor- 
tunes, and by which he pilots his barque 
through the oft-times stormy and tumultu- 
ous sea of life. When youth steps out upon 
life's stage of action, life's future is then as 
a bank of clay: with "Thought" as his tool 
he goes to work, and the product or result of 
his life, is the product or result of his 
Thoughts, and one corresponds and is relat- 
ed to the other. "As he Thinketh in his 
heart, so is he" — a clear concise Biblical 
statement of a stupendous Truth, often 
quoted, but faintly realized. 



Thought — 

Its 

Character 

And 

Mode 

Of 

Expression. 



CHAPTER VI. 

The knowledge of what a Thought is, in 
and of itself, is as yet beyond us and its ex- 
act nature may never be known, but we can 
know something of the way in which it man- 
ifests itself. 

Thought expresses itself by force, through 
motion, vibratory in its character, and is a 
substance, though not a material substance. 
We must remember that we have to deal with 
both spiritual and material substances, and 
that the spiritual or unseen is the real. It 
pre-existed and will continue to exist 
throughout eternity, while material sub- 
stance and things which are seen are the re- 
sult of existence of spiritual substance — the 
product of it and are for time only. 

All students and investigators will agree 
that Thought is expressed by force through 
motion. If this be true, logically we are led 
to the conclusion that Thought is a sub- 

75 



76 Thought, its Character 

stance, for without substance or a medium, 
without parts or particles in that medium, 
without motion, vibratory or otherwise, it is 
impossible to form any conception whatever 
of force or power. 

This is a Law of the mechanics of sound, 
heat, light, electricity, etc. Motion and vi- 
bration involves a "something" that moves 
or vibrates. What is that "something ?" No 
one knows, save that it is a spiritual or invis- 
ible substance. 

But while we do not know what a Thought 
is in and of itself, we know that it expresses 
itself by force, through a vibratory move- 
ment or motion and is a substance. 

When we think, that substance is put in 
motion, a stress or vibratory movement is 
set up in the etheric atmosphere which sur- 
rounds us, similar to the waves produced in 
casting a pebble into the water. 

Just as motion is set up the instant the 
pebble comes in contact with the water, so 
the instant a Thought is formulated, a stress 



and Mode of Expression. 77 

or vibratory movement is set up and the 
Thought begins to travel. 

The strength of this vibratory movement 
or Thought wave depends upon the vigor, 
energy and earnestness of the desire which 
is back of the Thought. 

The more force with which the pebble is 
cast into the water, the larger, stronger and 
farther reaching are the waves produced by 
it. 

The more force and energy put behind 
Thought — the more intense the desire, the 
more earnest the purpose; the greater be- 
comes the power vested in the Thought, the 
more force it carries, the further it will go 
and the deeper will be the impression which 
will be made. 

The more one can realize the righteous- 
ness and beneficence of his desire and pur- 
pose, the more force and energy he can put 
in the Thought, the greater its power. 

The higher and more noble the purpose 
and desire, the more powerful the Thought, 
because of the finer and higher rate of its 



78 Thought, its Character 

vibratory movement. Good is stronger and 
more potent than evil.. 

If Thought is a substance as it is assumed 
to be. and if no substance in the universe 
ever ceases to exist, and every atom is in con- 
stant motion — nothing in the whole universe 
being ever at rest — what becomes of a 
Thought when once formulated and sent 
out? 

Does it ever cease to exist? If sent out 
for a speciric purpose will it accomplish 
that purpose and then continue to exist, 
manifesting itself thereafter through the in- 
dividual who received it? Will Thought 
substance once put in motion ever cease to 
exist, either by itself or blending with other 
Thoughts of like nature ? Close study, obser- 
vation and experiments made along this line 
lead me to believe that this is true; that a 
Thought once formulated, does not cease to 
exist in some form, but the workings of the 
Law relating to Thought is so subtile that it 
is difficult for us to comprehend it, or to be- 
lieve when we experience it. 



and Mode of Expression, 79 

But in a further analysis of Thought, we 
see in its expression two things, force or mo- 
tion, and intelligence — a duality. Duality, 
pairs, doubles seem to be one of the laws of 
the universe. Look which way we may, we 
see duality and opposites manifested. And 
Thought is no exception. In its expression, 
it combines both force and intelligence. 

There is no such thing in the universe as 
an intelligent force or motion — that is, a 
force or power which is in and of itself intel- 
ligence. It is unthinkable. It does not ex- 
ist. 

Intelligence, in and of itself possesses no 
force or power. By itself alone, it is with- 
out the means of manifesting or expressing 
itself. 

Force or power, by itself alone, is simply 
wasted or destructive energy. 

When force or power unite or combine 
with intelligence, we have what may be 
called in its manifestation, an intelligent 
force. 

When this is understood we shall see that 



80 Thought, its Character, etc, 

the quality of the intelligence used in con- 
junction with power, governs the effective- 
ness of the Thought. 

"Knowledge is power," and knowledge 
implies intelligence. The higher the degree 
of knowledge and intelligence, the greater 
the power at command. 

With the conscious and intelligent recog- 
nition of that power, the results then depend 
upon the way in which it is used. 



Thought — 

Its 

Qualities 

And 

The 

Laws 

Governing 

Its 

Transmission. 



CHAPTER VII. 

We say that Thought travels — and it does, 
but how does it travel ? What is the medium 
through or by which it is transmitted ? That 
a Thought of one person will reach another 
is a fact now too well known to admit of a 
question. Thought, in manifestation, is 
both force and intelligence, with power to 
project itself, but there must be some me- 
dium by which it can travel — wires over 
which the message may be conveyed. 

There is all about us, and permeating 
every known substance, that which is termed 
"Atmospheric Ether" — a finer, more highly 
attenuated atmosphere, and it is the consen- 
sus of scientific opinion that this "etheric 
atmosphere" is the medium through, by, or 
over which, Thought is transmitted. 

And here I may as well say that it is my 
belief that all power in the universe, no mat- 
ter what its form or mission, whether mani- 



84 Thought, its Qualities and the 

jested in animate or inanimate nature, is 
but a different form of manifestation of one 
and the same force or energy, and that the 
initial force or energy, in all cases, is thai 
which is known to us as Electrical energy. 
A clear conception of this will enable us to 
arrive at a better understanding of the mani- 
fold and complex manifestations of force 
and power, as well as to determine their ori- 
gin. 

Thought then travels along the Etheric 
Waves, the will, desire, force, energy and in- 
telligence back of the Thought determining 
its power and quality. 

In its outward effect, a weak or negative 
Thought cannot produce any deep impres- 
sion, for the reason that it lacks the neces- 
sary force. 

It mingles with the Thought atmosphere 
in which we live, producing an effect com- 
mensurate with the degree of energy which 
is back of it. 

A positive energetic Thought produces a 
distinct activity in the Etheric atmosphere 



Laws Governing its Transmission. 85 

about us, or an effect on the individual to 
whom it is sent. 

The intention to send the Thought need 
not be present in order to have it reach the 
individual. Some of the most marked in- 
stances of Thought transmission which I 
have experienced, occurred when there was 
no intention of sending the Thought, simply 
connecting it with the person. 

It is my belief that intensified Thought, 
or earnest desire and purpose, connected 
with the person, will reach him better and 
produce stronger, more distinct impressions, 
than will a Thought formulated with the ex- 
press purpose of sending it. 

I believe this to be the most effective way 
of making the desired impressions upon the 
mind of another, but it does not impair nor 
detract from the fact that a Thought formu- 
lated and projected with the purpose of 
reaching another will perform its mission, 
in just the degree in which conditions are 
favorable. Both methods are effective, the 



86 Thought, its Qualities and the 

choice depending upon the nature of the im- 
pressions which are sought to be made. 

Thought carries feeling and distinct im- 
pressions, other than the actual Thought it- 
self with it, and the more feeling, the more 
earnestness put into the Thought, the more 
will the impressions made conform to the 
character of what is behind the Thought. 

We cannot hold a Thought. It travels 
whether we will it to or not and the impres- 
sions made by our Thought, the results ob- 
tained, depend upon conditions and as con- 
ditions vary, so will the results. 

And what are the conditions? They are 
various. Some are more psychic or sensitive 
than others and are the more easily affected 
by Thought impressions. The more passive 
the person, the more easily he can be influ- 
enced ; but when occupied, it is more difficult 
and the more intense his occupation the 
more difficult it becomes. 

We can the more readily impress those 
who are in sympathy with us — those whom 
we know personally, and with whom we have 



Laws Governing its Transmission. 87 

come in contact by the clasp of the hand — a 
form of greeting that is not without its sig- 
nificance. 

We can as a rule, reach one more easily 
while asleep, but the impressions then may, 
or may not, rise above the threshold of con- 
sciousness, depending upon the degree or 
depth of sleep. All are more or less affected 
by Thought, either direct or from the 
Thought atmosphere surrounding us, during 
the hours of sleep. 

If the sleep be light the impressions made 
may take the form of a message from an- 
other, but in the deep sleep the impressions 
made will seem to be the Thought of self. 

Because we do not see some external evi- 
dence that a Thought has been received, or 
because the person claims to be unconscious 
of having received any Thought or impres- 
sion, it does not in the least indicate that 
the Thought did not reach him. I believe 
that a Thought projected to a person, or ear- 
nest Thought connected with him can and 
does reach him without doubt, at all times. 



88 Thought, its Qualities and the 

I have reason to believe this true, and while 
we cannot always see the results from the 
Thought sent, and the person is unconscious 
of any impressions having been made, never- 
theless, the Thought reaches him and makes 
an impression, though he does not recognize 
it. 

Thought reaching a person, and indica- 
cations that it did reach him, are two differ- 
ent and distinct propositions. Do not con- 
found them. There are many things that 
may qualify, neutralize, annul or intensify a 
Thought or an impression which finds en- 
trance to the mind. We do not by any means 
act on all the Thoughts we have, and to the 
observer there is no external evidence that 
we have such Thoughts. There are many 
things which must be taken into considera- 
tion in investigating the Thought realm and 
we must be careful and observing if we 
would arrive at the truth. 

We are living in a vast ocean of Thought 
which for aught we know, may extend from 
this to other planets. The higher we go, the 



Laws Governing its Transmission. 89 

finer and more attenuated the atmosphere 
becomes until there is nothing but pure 
ether, and as it is a law of physics that the 
heavier or grosser particles will always set- 
tle at the bottom, can it be that the coarser 
and grosser forms of Thought gravitate 
towards the earth, while the higher and 
finer forms of Thought are above, in the 
pure ether which fills all space? How nat- 
ural for the eye and mind to turn upward 
when its concepts are pure, good, elevating 
and enobling, as in prayer ! Is there a rea- 
son for this ? 

By our own volition, we place ourselves 
in harmony — on the same plane of vibratory 
movement — with either the Higher or Gross- 
er forms of Thought. The natural or mate- 
rial man who lives in the material world, 
is in harmony with, and on the vibratory 
plane of the lower or grosser Thought realm, 
while the Spiritual man, the one who, while 
in the material world and recognizing the 
claims of all physical laws, lives above it in 
spirit, and draws his Thought and inspira- 



90 Thought, its Qualities and the 

tion from the higher and more spiritual. 
Thought realm, because of his living on a 
higher vibratory plane and in harmony with 
the divine. And like attracts like. 

And to one who is living in this higher or 
spiritual atmosphere, will there come in- 
creased power of spiritual discernment 
which will enable him to distinguish and un- 
derstand more clearly . higher or spiritual 
laws, as well as the relation of the spiritual 
to the material. 

If Thought, in manifestation, is vibra- 
tion, all spiritual law being universal, it 
must follow that the conditions governing 
vibratory movement in other things, must 
obtain in the realm of Thought. 

Each kind or quality of Thought has its 
own specific rate of vibration. The lower 
and grosser the Thought, the coarser and 
slower the rate of vibration. The higher 
and purer the Thought, the higher and finer 
the vibratory movement. In disease, except 
in fever, the vibratory movement of the body 
is lower and slower than in health. 



Laws Governing its Transmission. 91 

And here comes in the Law of Attraction, 
"like attracts like/' Each Thought or 
thing is related to its kind and of necessity, 
attracts to it that which is related to, or in 
correspondence with it. 

Thoughts of fear, discouragement, disea c e, 
vice and crime which you may hold are re- 
lated to other Thoughts of a like nature and 
attract them to you. 

Thoughts of health, happiness, courage, 
hope, success and all good, relate themselves 
to other Thoughts of a like nature and bring 
them to you, 

The Laws of Attraction and Harmony are 
"twin brothers." You attract to yourself 
that which is in harmony with the Thought 
you hold. Your mental attitude determines 
what shall come to you. Do not forget this. 
It is absolutely true, though you may not 
see it now. 

If you enjoy discouraging, pessimistic 
Thoughts and want them, just commence 
thinking them, and you will have them in 
abundance. Eeverse this and think such 



92 Thought, its Qualities, etc. 

Thoughts as will build you up and contri- 
bute to your higher development and growth, 
your health and success, and you will find 
these things coming to you. 

Eemember that you always attract to 
yourself the same class or quality of Thought 
which you hold. The things which come to 
you will correspond to your mental attitude 
— to the Thoughts which dominate you. and 
to the demands of your Thought realm. 
Every moment your Thought is determining 
what shall come to you. 

"Thoughts do not need the wings of words 

To fly to any goal ; 
Like subtle lightning, not like birds, 

They speed from soul to soul. 
Hide in your heart a bitter Thought, 

Still it has power to blight ; 
Think love, although you speak it not, 

It gives the world more light." 



Thought — 

Attraction 

And 

Reproduction. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

By your Thought, you condition your own 
circumstances, your success and your happi- 
ness and if your life is not what it should 
be, blame "fate" for it if you wish, but re- 
member that "fate" is simply the product of 
Thought. Your Thought determines your 
"fate." 

The Law of Attraction works in conjunc- 
tion with the Law of Harmony, therefore it 
can only attract to itself, that which is in 
harmony with it. "As he Thinketh in his 
heart so is he." Why? Because of the 
Laws of Attraction and Harmony ! Recog- 
nize these Laws, work in harmony with them 
and you will have far less to complain of — 
you will see things conforming to your 
ideals, just in the degree in which you are 
true to these Laws and to the wisdom and 
knowledge you possess. 

But bear in mind that it is the persistent 

95 



96 Thought, Attraction 

Thought, the fixed, determined purpose that 
calls into existence the desired result. The 
mere thinking of a thing for a day will not 
bring it. Eesults may come quickly at 
times, and again it may take weeks or 
months to actualize your desires. It all de- 
pends upon conditions. Never become dis- 
couraged, for these Laws are absolute in 
their operation. It takes time to change ex- 
isting conditions so that results are mani- 
fest, for there are opposing and neutralizing 
forces which have to be taken into consider- 
ation. Formulate your desires, fix your 
ideals and then hold to them with firmness 
and determination, and know that in time 
you will realize and attain them if they are 
just and right. 

We are living in a vast ocean of Thought 
and we all add our quota to it. We also 
draw from it. Our Thoughts reach and in- 
fluence others and the Thoughts of others 
reach and influence us. "No man liveth un- 
to himself" is a divine truth with a deep in- 
terior meaning. 



and Reproduction. 97 

Your Thought relates you to other per- 
sons, though you may never have recognized 
this truth. Your happy, cheerful, encour- 
aging Thoughts reach and help others and 
the same Thoughts from others reach and 
help you. As you sow, so shall you reap. 
You cannot sow evil Thought and reap good. 
You cannot sow Thoughts of discourage- 
ment and reap success. Take this rule — 
think of things as you want them to occur, 
then hold to it, and you will soon see changes 
taking place in the right direction. 

By virtue of the Law of Attraction and 
Harmony, Thought becomes an attractive 
force. As the magnet will attract to itself 
that which is in harmony or correspondence 
with it, so will Thought attract to it, that 
which is in correspondence with its nature 
and character. We shall reap what we sow, 
and the sooner we come into a vital realiza- 
tion of this Divine Truth, and maintain the 
right mental attitude, the sooner we will 
find ourselves in the position where we can 
control and condition our circumstances and 

7 



98 Thought, Attraction 

environment. Can we gather figs from this- 
tles? 

Thought reproduces itself and in that re- 
production it becomes more fully developed. 
It reproduces its kind. With the vast ocean 
of Thought surrounding us, taking into con- 
sideration the creative, constructive, project- 
ing, attractive and reproductive character or 
quality of Thought, we may say that the pos- 
sibilities before us are the possibilities of our 
Thought, limited only by the concepts of the 
mind and of faith. Who can measure these 
possibilities ? Who can say what is impossi- 
ble ? Where is the limit ? You can do any- 
thing you really believe you can, if you will 
to do it, and persevere. 

Thought is the fundamental and control- 
ling factor in life — the initial or primal 
cause of all outward life expression, and of 
all that pertains to man in his relation to 
his material environment. The only limi- 
tation placed on our Thought is the measure 
of our spiritual perception, and the wisdom 
and knowledge we possess. 



and Reproduction. 99 

Distance is no barrier, for Thought can 
circle the globe, and we have no means of 
knowing to what extent it may penetrate the 
infinite space above ns. Thought is instan- 
taneous in its movement, hence the element 
of time does not enter into consideration. 

Mind — Thought, includes all forces. 
Though the world at large has been slow to 
recognize the fact, there have always been 
some philosophers who have grasped the 
transcendent idea that Thought is the first 
great initial and primary expression of 
power in the universe, and that at a final 
analysis, all other force or power is but the 
Thought of God or man, in some of its va- 
ried forms of manifestations. We must rec- 
ognize the fact that all outward manifesta- 
tion of power is but the expression of that 
which is within, and that only that can find 
outward expression which exists within, 
therefore Thought is, in every sense of the 
word, the outward expression of the funda- 
mental principle of life. 

A mere intellectual understanding of 

ILofC> 



100 Thought, Attraction 

these principles and laws will not of itself, 
produce results. When yon know them, 
commence at once to make practical appli- 
cation of them in every detail of your life. 
If yon want to change your condition, think 
different conditions — such as you would 
have. If you want success, think success. 
If Love and good-will, think the same, and 
there is nothing surer than that sooner or 
later you will attract to yourself the things 
you desire, if they are within the limits of 
your ability or comprehension. 

Thought is indeed the great and all-pow- 
erful tool with which man carves out his for- 
tunes or misfortunes — and he is surely and 
constantly shaping one or the other. The 
skill with which he uses this tool, and the 
results obtained, will depend upon the de- 
gree cf his wisdom, knowledge and intelli- 
gence. 

The way to change your life or existing 
conditions, is to change your mental attitude 
— think of things as you want them to occur. 
Thought tends to take form in action, and 



and Reproduction. 101 

just as you hold to the right mental attitude 
will you find your best and strongest 
Thoughts seeking expression through exter- 
nal activity. 

'Remember above all else, that the degree 
of greatness depends upon the quality of 
purpose. Let this Thought be with you in 
all your thinking. With all kinds, quality 
and grade of Thought at your command 
from which to choose, it is with you to say 
what your Thought, and consequently what 
your life and attainment shall be. 

Man can be what he wills to be. Let the 
desire, aims, ambitions and the ideals be 
right, with earnestness in the desire; force, 
energy and determination behind the 
Thought, and corresponding results will fol- 
low. 

The only limitation placed upon man, is 
that of the degree of his faith or belief. 
Think helpful, strengthening and encourag- 
ing Thoughts, have confidence in vourself 
and in your ability, and with the right ideals 



102 Thought, Attraction, etc. 

before you, persevere in your determination 
to accomplish your purpose. 

Thought — right Thinking — is the agency 
through which you will accomplish these 
things. Every scheme, every deed, every act 
has its birth in Thought. Begin now, put 
in practice what you have learned, and then, 
learn more each day. Think, act for your 
self. Difficulties are only a means of devel 
oping your strength and interior forces. 
!Never flinch before them but face and over 
come them and you will find yourself — the 
real self — unfolding each day, and attaining 
to real and substantial growth and develop 
ment. 

How it is that Thought acts, that it ex- 
presses itself externally, and that which is 
bach of Thought, will be elucidated in the 
following chapters on the "Dual Mind" and 
"Law." 



Man — 

His 

Creation 

And 

Development. 



CHAPTER IX. 

In considering the subject matter of this 
and succeeding chapters, I shall adhere to 
the Biblical account of the creation of Man, 
as well as to its definitions of what man is, 
the purpose of his creation and his future 
destiny, together with the collateral truths 
involved in each sphere. In taking this po- 
sition, I am aware that I shall encounter the 
criticisms of the materialist, and of those 
who accept the theory of organic evolution, 
but criticisms and theories are of minor im- 
portance where Truth is in question. I ac- 
cept the statements of the Bible as being pos- 
itive and final, bevond dispute and not open 
to question, but a right understanding and 
correct interpretation of any and all Scrip- 
ture, depends upon clearness of spiritual 
perception, and the unbiased desire to know 
the truth for its own sake. 

It is foreign to my purpose to go into an 

105 



106 Man, His Creation 

exhaustive argument or examination of the 
different theories in regard to the creation 
of Man, nor is it necessary. I have given 
careful attention to this important question, 
and taking into consideration what I under- 
stand from the Bible to be the purposes of 
God in the creation of Man, His purposes 
concerning him here and hereafter; looking 
at Man as we know him to be — a triune be- 
ing in his physical expression and a dual be- 
ing in mind; viewing him in his future 
state or condition, which must be the out- 
come of necessity of what he is, and in con- 
formity with the unchangeable purposes of 
God, I find no theory regarding his creation 
that will hold together, outside of that given 
in the Bible. All others are weak in some 
points and there are missing links in the 
chain which render it complete. The evi- 
dence and proof of this 1 cannot submit 
here, though there is an abundance of it, 
therefore without going further into the 
question, I shall assume the Biblical account 
of the creation of Man, as well as its state- 



and Development. 107 

ments of what he is and of all that concerns 
him. 

What is man? He who created him says 
he is "Body, Soul and Spirit." A clear, 
concise and intelligible definition. Here we 
need to attend to our interpretation or defi- 
nition of words, and as our understanding 
of a thing depends upon the way in which 
we understand the terms employed, 1 will 
briefly define the sense in which I shall use 
the terms "Spirit" and "Soul." 

The word "Spirit" is a very broad term 
and has different meanings, but in the sense 
in which it is used in the above quotation, I 
understand it to mean the spirit form — the 
counterpart of the material man, in other 
words, the Spiritual body, which is clothed 
upon by the material. 

The "'Soul," I understand to be that with- 
in us which is, so-to-speak, a part of God, 
that which relates us to God, partaking of 
His nature and attributes and living forever. 
In the language of Psychology, it is the 
"Sub-conscious" or "Subjective" mind of 



108 Man, His Creation 

Man. This will be more fully considered in 
a subsequent chapter. 

In Genesis 1, 21, we read, "So God cre- 
ated man in His own Image, in the image of 
God created He him: male and female cre- 
ated He them." Let us cast aside our own 
ideas, our prejudices and opinions for the 
moment, and consider this statement just as 
it reads. God created Man in His own im- 
age and likeness. What is God ? A Spirit- 
ual or a Material being ? None will contend 
that He is Material. Then, if He is a Spir- 
itual being, Man, created in His image and 
likeness must of necessity have been created 
a Spiritual being also. Let us not try to 
force any interpretation, but consider the 
above statement of the creation of Man, 
with its clear language, just as it reads. As 
created by God, in His image and likeness, 
Man was Spirit and Soul. 

But how came he to be what we see him 
now? To fulfill the purpose of God con- 
cerning him as lord over a material creation 
— to have dominion over every living crea- 



and Development. 109 

tare upon the earth, to place him in corres- 
pondence or in harmony with his material 
surroundings, necessity demanded a mate- 
rial or physical body, in order to meet the 
demands of life-expression in a material 
world, hence, in Genesis 11, 7. we read, "And 
the Lord formed man of the dust of the 
ground, and breathed into his nostrils the 
breath of life and man became a living soul," 
and in vs. 22, "And the rib, which the Lord 
God had taken from man, made he a 
woman, and brought her unto the man/' No- 
tice that only in chapter I, 27. where the 
"Spiritual" man is in question, is the word 
"Created" used, and that in speaking of the 
material body, or "house" in which the man 
is to dwell, the words "formed" and "made" 
are employed. 

Note also the simultaneous creation of the 
Spiritual Man — male and female — in chap- 
ter one, and the separate and distinct forma- 
tion of the physical or material Man and 
Woman in chapter n. In chapter I we find 
Man created in the image and likeness of 



110 Man, His Creation 

God, and in chapter n we find God giving 
him a material body, thus placing him in 
correspondence with his material surround- 
ings. Here we find the complete physical 
and spiritual man — Body, Soul and Spirit. 
All is in perfect harmony, and our present 
knowledge of what Man is, conforms to these 
statements as to his creation. 

Created in the image and likeness of God, 
placed upon this earth in all the innocence 
and purity that is implied by virtue of his 
creation, Man failed to maintain his state or 
condition of innocency and that which we 
term "the fall of Man" was the result. 

And what are we to understand by the 
"fall of Man ?" The coming into the knowl- 
edge of good and evil. Before this, Man had 
no knowledge of evil and knew only good. 
We can with safety assume that in the eating 
of the "fruit of the tree of knowledge of good 
and evil" he acquired his material or con- 
scious mind, and through it, the knowledge 
of good and evil. There can be no question 
as to the nature of that which constituted 



and Development. Ill 

the "fall." "And the Lord God said, behold 
the man has become as one of us, to know 
good and evil and now, lest he put forth his 
hand and take also of the tree of life and live 
forever, etc." Man had fallen from his high 
estate of purity and innocence in acquiring 
the knowledge of good and. evil, and to per- 
petuate life under the conditions that then 
obtained, would mean the perpetuation of 
sin, suffering and misery, therefore this 
world is not the continual abiding place of 
Man. He enters it that he may leave it 
again, but if he shall choose, and make his 
life here what it should be, he will yet again 
attain the life of innocence and purity which 
he has forfeited, through a process similar to 
that by which he is first introduced to us in 
Genesis. 

With the "fall," or with the acquirement 
of the knowledge of good and evil, there 
came what we term, the "Conscious mind." 
Before this, Man was possessed of Soul, or 
that which we know as the "Subconscious 
mind" and now he acquires another mind — 



112 Man, His Creation 

the conscious or material mind, constituting 
him mentally a dual being. With the Con- 
scious or Material mind and the knowledge 
of both good and evil, comes the power of 
choice — the "free moral agency of Man." 
While he now has the knowledge of both 
good and evil, he has the power to choose be- 
tween them and therefore becomes a being 
responsible for his own acts and choice. 

First, we have the creation of the "Spir- 
itual" Man, next, we find him housed in a 
material body, to meet the demands of mate- 
rial conditions and environment, still 
clothed with innocence and purity, then we 
find him coming into a knowledge of both 
good and evil, and at last, we see him as he 
now is, a human being, with Body, Soul and 
Spirit and his dual mind. 

We must remember that the demands of 
necessity always exist before the creation of 
any thing or faculty. There is a cause which 
brings all things into existence, and it is as 
essential that we recognize the necessity or 
cause, as it is that we recognize the thing it- 



and Development, 113 

self. It is impossible for us to understand 
Man in his varied aspects, or the operations 
of any of his varied faculties, except we go 
back of all and seek to understand the neces- 
sity which called him and his faculties into 
existence. 

When man came into the possession of the 
knowledge of good and evil, it was necessary 
that he be endowed with the power of choice, 
that he might choose for himself, otherwise 
he would be a mere automaton, hence the 
necessity existed for the material or con- 
scious mind, and now, he chooses for him- 
self. His choice depends upon his desire and 
purpose, and the quality of his desire and 
purpose depends upon the measure of his 
wisdom and knowledge. 

Man then, as we see him now, is endowed 
with a Spiritual and Material mind. The 
one identifies him with the higher or spirit- 
ual realm, the other with this world and ma- 
terial life. He is possessed of the power of 
choice and the knowledge of good and evil. 
He has within, the promptings of good; 



114 Man, His Creation 

from without, the promptings of evil. Now, 
what he becomes depends altogether upon 
ihe choice he makes. 

In the Conscious and Subconscious minds, 
man is provided with every faculty needed 
to meet the requirements of his surround- 
ings and environment. What he becomes 
will depend entirely upon the faculties he 
unfolds and the way in which he develops 
them. As we meet him in the ordinary walks 
of life, he has developed his Conscious or 
objective faculties at the expense of the Sub- 
conscious or Spiritual, hence he is slow to 
perceive Spiritual truth, but quick to grasp 
the material. Indeed, the Spiritual realm is 
unreal to him, and he can only perceive that 
which appeals to him through the five phy- 
sical senses. 

This is one-sided development. A sym- 
metrical development demands the cultiva- 
tion and use of both our material and Soul 
faculties, but in the intense material and 
commercial atmosphere which surrounds 
man, he becomes almost oblivious to the ex- 



and Development. 115 

istence of the finer and higher faculties of 
the Soul, and thus choosing, he fails in the 
almost limitless possibilities which are his. 

Before man can reach the highest degree 
of development of himself or of his own 
powers, he must know and understand what 
he is. The measure of his attainment will 
be the measure of his knowledge of God and 
his understanding of the various faculties 
and powers of the Conscious and Subcon- 
scious minds, the Laws governing them, and 
the use he can and does make of them. 

Man know thyself, is an admonition 
which we will do well to heed. 



The— 

Dual 

Character 

Of 

The 

Mind. 



CHAPTEE X. 

In order to understand the varied and 
complex activities of the mental faculties in 
their relation to Spiritual, Physical and Ma- 
terial life-expression, their powers and pos- 
sibilities, it is necessary to understand and 
fully recognize the Dual character of the 
Mind. While "Thought" is in truth the 
"Key-note" of life, the "Dual Mind" may 
justly be termed the great "key-stone" in the 
arch of manifested or expressed life. 

The phenomena of life cannot be at all 
correctly interpreted until the Dual charac- 
ter of the mind is both recognized and un- 
derstood. It is immaterial to us at this 
point whether the mind of man is Dual — 
two minds — or whether he has one mind 
with dual faculties, as our present purpose 
is fully served in recognizing the broad fact 
that the mind is Dual in its character and 
operations. The Duality of the mind is 

119 



120 The Dual Character 

demonstrated beyond question in the phe- 
nomena of so-called "Hypnosis," where the 
Conscious mind, or the Conscious faculties 
are held in abeyance and the Subconscious 
mind only is active. 

While the Dual mind can be recognized 
and its operations noted in ones self and in 
others in the waking state, by those who have 
made a study of it, the condition known as 
"Hypnosis" affords the best opportunity for 
distinguishing more clearly its distinct op- 
erations. 

The Doctor of Psychology in active prac- 
tice, who is also a sincere and earnest inves- 
tigator, has perhaps the best opportunity for 
the study of the complex activities of the 
mental faculties, coming as he does in con- 
tact with his patients in a practical way and 
not for experiment. Only those who have 
made a study of man under these conditions 
can form more than a faint conception of the 
wonderful and transcendent powers of the 
Soul, of the clear distinction which exists 
between the Conscious and Subconscious 



of The Mind. 121 

mind, or of how they often war against each 
other in their complex and subtile activities. 

The average person has not the faintest 
idea as to how he is controlled or actuated 
in his life-expression, nor can he have until 
he recognizes the existence of the Dual mind 
and understands its operations. When he 
comes into this knowledge he enters a new 
sphere of existence where a light of exceed- 
ing brilliancy is shining and life assumes a 
different aspect. He understands much in 
his life which has been unintelligible to him 
and he comes to understand how he can ex- 
ercise a control over himself and over all 
that concerns him. 

While it is only in recent years that this 
great truth of the Dual mind has come to 
be at all generally recognized, there have al- 
ways been those who have recognized its ex- 
istence and understood its operations to a 
greater or less extent. The Bible teaches it 
from first to last and the light has been shin- 
ing all along, but man blinded by his own 
conceits would not see it. At last scientific 



122 The Dual Character 

experiments have demonstrated the fact be- 
yond dispute and it is no longer questioned 
by those who lay prejudice aside and ap- 
proach the subject with the desire to know 
the facts. It is not a "New" truth, for in 
the Scriptures will be found the thread of 
Duality of Mind and Duality of Being run- 
ning from beginning to end. 

That man is not only possessed of a Dual 
Mind, but also of a complete dual being, is 
plainly taught in the Scriptures. "There is 
a natural body and there is a spiritual 
body." (1st Cor. XV, 44.) Through the 
influences of our material teachings and en- 
vironment we have come to regard the phy- 
sical being as the real and only man, while 
the truth is there is in each and every indi- 
vidual both the Spiritual and Material man, 
each complete in himself and each possess- 
ing distinct faculties. 

There is no field which promises richer 
reward for sincere and painstaking study 
and investigation, than that covered by the 
Dual mind, with its transcendent powers 



of The Mind. 123 

and the manifold operations of its faculties. 
In the degree in which we discern and un- 
derstand the operations of both the Con- 
scious and Subconscious mind, will we come 
to understand and realize the vast possibili- 
ties which are within the range of our at- 
tainment. The field is broad and seemingly 
without limit, and the reward promised for 
its exploration is great indeed. 

But the one who pursues his investiga- 
tions purely from a scientific standpoint, 
with certain subjects for experimental pur- 
poses, will not discover the deepest truths. 
He will make some progress and will attain 
his purpose in a degree, but the highest and 
most transcendent truths will be reserved for 
those who have the opportunity for study 
and investigation in connection with actual 
and practical work, in treating the large va- 
riety of people that come within the field of 
the practitioner of Suggestive Therapeutics, 
and who is able to study all from a spiritual 
standpoint, discerning spiritual things by 
spiritual means. 



124 The Dual Character 

From such we may hope for much that 
will throw additional light upon the opera- 
tions of the Dual mind, as well as upon all 
the phenomena of life, and the whole subject 
merits the most painstaking care and inves- 
tigation. 

Not until we know and understand our- 
selves as we are, our capabilities and our 
powers will we be able to govern and control 
ourselves, our circumstances and our envir- 
onment, nor will we be able to get the most 
and best out of ourselves, therefore the 
greatest study of mankind is man, and the 
more we study him, the better will we un- 
derstand the attainments which are possible 
to him through the unfoldment and develop- 
ment of the faculties and powers which are 
within him. 

It is difficult to find a term that properly 
expresses the true nature and functions of 
the two minds, but I shall use the term "Sub- 
conscious mind" to designate that which we 
know as the Soul, or Soul Intelligence; and 
"Conscious mind" to express that which we 



of The Mind. 125 

understand as the natural or material mind : 
and as many become confused by the multi- 
plicity of the terms used to express the same 
thing, I will give those which are used 
synonymously. 



THE 
CONSCIOUS MIND. 



Objective mind. 
Natural mind. 
Mortal mind. 
Material mind. 



THE 
SUBCONSCIOUS MIND. 



Soul. 

Unconscious mind. 
Subjective mind. 
Oversoul. 
Subliminal Self. 



The— 

Conscious 
Mind. 



CHAPTEE XI. 

From the moment of birth, we are ush- 
ered into an atmosphere which is thoroughly 
impregnated with influences and Sugges- 
tions from the Material world in which we 
live, and in a degree which is in keeping with 
the development of our intelligence, begin to 
come under the dominion of the material 
senses or the Conscious mind. The power 
and extent of this dominion increases with 
our growth and our years, except as it may 
be changed or neutralized through the devel- 
opment of our higher faculties. 

The Conscious mind pertains to our mate- 
rial existence only ; it is governed by the five 
physical senses, and is the necessary out- 
growth of our material existence. 

The principal faculty of the Conscious 
mind is that of reason. It reasons by all 
methods — inductively, from particulars to 
general conclusions; deductively, from con- 

9 129 



130 The 

elusions to particulars ; analytically and syn- 
thetically, but inductive reasoning is exclu- 
sively a faculty of the Conscious mind and 
is a faculty pertaining to this life only, ren- 
dered necessary by the limitation of our 
knowledge. 

The other faculty of the Conscious mind 
is that of Recollection. Many attribute 
some phases of memory to the Conscious 
mind, but my investigations lead me to be- 
lieve that all memory rests with the Subcon- 
scious mind and that that which is regarded 
as the memory of the Conscious mind is but 
the manifestation of its powers of recollec- 
tion. 

I believe that a close analysis will show 
that Inductive reasoning and Recollection 
are the only two faculties possessed by the 
Conscious mind, and that all else is but the 
activities of the Subconscious mind express- 
ing itself through one of these Conscious 
faculties. 

The Conscious mind takes cosrnizance of 



Conscious Mind. 131 

the outward or material world, and its media 
of observation are the five senses. 

It is our guide in the struggle for material 
existence. When we are dominated by it, 
we are led towards an increasing material- 
ism and come to believe that nothing is real 
or worth our effort, except that which ap- 
peals to us through the five senses, but in the 
degree in which it is brought under the con- 
trolling influences of the Soul faculties or 
Subconscious mind, we come more and more 
under the dominion of this higher intelli- 
gence and the Conscious mind becomes sub- 
ordinate to the Subconscious mind, its facul- 
ties being illuminated by the light and in- 
telligence of the Soul. 

The Conscious mind is governed by rea- 
son, but the clearness and correctness of its 
reasonings are determined by the degree of 
knowledge and intelligence possessed by the 
individual, and also by the illumination af- 
forded through the spiritual faculties of the 
Soul. It is difficult to control one contrary 
to reason, but this can be done by persistent 



132 The 

effort^ in the degree in which the Conscious 
mind can in some way be held in abeyance, 
so that the influence or Suggestion can be 
brought to bear upon the "Subconscious 
mind. We see this constantly and it illus- 
trates the wonderful power of Suggestion 
even in the waking state and at the same 
time shows us that the Subconscious mind 
can be controlled contrary to reason and 
judgment, when we are living under the do- 
minion of the Conscious mind. 

In a sense, the Conscious mind is the 
guard or sentinel who says what shall pass 
and reach the Subconscious mind, and in the 
understanding of this one point lies the se- 
cret of knowing how to influence and con- 
trol others. Before a person can be influ- 
enced to action, the Subconscious mind must 
be reached, either through argument which 
is convincing to the Conscious mind, or 
through is inalertness. We must remember 
that the Conscious mind challenges what 
does not appeal to reason and that the nat- 
ural man is governed by reason, whether it 



Conscious Mind. 133 

be true or false and that the reasonings of 
the Conscious mind — the natural man — can- 
not be relied upon because it is purely mate- 
rial and can only perceive things from a ma- 
terial standpoint and because of its natural 
limitations. 

The one who is dominated by the Con- 
scious mind becomes more and more mate- 
rial, hence the more material he grows the 
less of the spiritual he can discern and the 
more difficult it becomes for him to grasp 
anything but that which appeals to his ma- 
terial senses. 

The man who is dominated by the Sub- 
conscious mind becomes more and more 
spiritual, with increasing clearness of spir- 
itual discernment as development progresses, 
discerning Spiritual things by Spiritual 
means; and as he comes to understand that 
the material exists only by reason and virtue 
of the pre-existence of the Spiritual, Reason 
becomes enlightened by the Spiritual facul- 
ties, he stands upon the foundation of Truth 
and Wisdom which is absolute in the degree 



134 The 

which is commensurate with his develop- 
ment, and he cannot be swayed or influenced 
contrary to that which he knows is Truth. 

We are Spiritual or Material in the de- 
gree in which we are governed by, or living 
under the dominion of, the Conscious or 
Subconscious mind. One leads to Spiritu- 
ality and the perception and understanding 
of the unseen, while the other leads to an 
intense Materialism which obscures the Soul 
faculties, and prevents us from discerning 
anything but that which appeals to us 
through the material senses. 

The Conscious mind was given us for a 
purpose and it should by all means be culti- 
vated, though not by itself alone. It pos- 
sesses faculties of great value to us if prop- 
erly used, but its highest use and value is 
attained through a corresponding develop- 
ment of the Subconscious mind. 

The highest development cannot be at- 
tained through the Conscious mind, for the 
reason that the physical senses only give us 
relative knowledge and that through these 



Conscious Mind. 135 

senses we can perceive only that which per- 
tains to the material world, which is itself 
but a consequence of the existence of tha 
Spiritual, therefore in limiting ourselves to 
the Material, we are limiting our knowledge 
and intelligence to the effect, the cause of 
which, is the Unseen or Spiritual realm. 

But in the development of the Subcon- 
scious mind, we come into the knowledge of 
that which is the first great cause of all that 
exists, and are able to measure and judge of 
things from a standpoint which gives us a 
clear and correct understanding of both the 
Spiritual and the Material side of life. We 
discern cause and effect; we come into a 
knowledge of Laws which are incessantly op- 
erating, by which our lives are controlled 
independent of our knowledge, wishes or be- 
liefs; Reason and Intelligence is illuminat- 
ed by the light of Divine or Spiritual Truth, 
and we find our whole life-expression con- 
forming to a higher standard of living, 
through being actuated by a higher order of 
intelligence. 



136 The Conscious Mind. 

All the powers and attributes of the Con- 
scious mind should be cultivated and devel- 
oped, but this should be done under the 
guidance of the Spiritual faculties. We 
must recognize the fact that Spiritual pow- 
ers transcend the material; that the Sub- 
conscious mind or Soul, in its powers and 
attributes, transcend the Conscious or Mate- 
rial, hence if we would attain that position 
where we can have the highest conceptions 
of life, and grasp the possibilities which are 
before us, the Conscious mind must be de- 
veloped under the light of the higher facul- 
ties of the Soul. 

In the Ideal life, true development and 
growth consists in the harmonious develop- 
ment of the mental faculties under the do- 
minion of the higher or Spiritual faculties 
of the Subconscious mind. 



The— 

Subconscious 
Mind. 



CHAPTER XII. 

The chief factor in human existence, the 
underlying cause of all physical and mate- 
rial expression, which is back of Thought, of 
Will and of Act, is the Subconscious mind. 
In all phases of life, as it is related to the 
Spiritual, the Material or the Physical, we 
are called upon to reckon with and consider 
this clear-seeing, never-sleeping and far- 
reaching Intelligence which is within us, 
the "Subconscious Mind" — the "Inner 
Man." 

There is absolutely no way, no state or 
condition in which we can escape from the 
ceaseless activities and controlling influences 
of this great and potential intelligence. It 
matters not whether we recognize or under- 
stand its existence, it is with us and opera- 
tive just the same in its potency and power, 
and it is impossible for us to measure mo- 
tive, or understand that silent and subtle 

139 



140 The 

influence which controls us in all we do, un- 
til we come into a knowledge and under- 
standing of the Subconscious mind, its pow- 
ers, and the Laws which govern its activity. 

And what is this which we term the "Sub- 
conscious Mind?" It is the mind that 
never sleeps and which is unceasing in its 
activities. It is that intelligence within us 
which is not the result of education; which 
takes us beyond ourselves, and which per- 
ceives Truth independent of the material 
senses, or of others.* In a word, it is the 
Soul of man, which lives forever — the inner 
man, whose habitation throughout this ma- 
terial existence is this material body which 
we have been in the habit of assuming to be 
the real self. 

The attributes, qualities, functions and 
powers of the Subconscious mind, or Soul, 
are varied and potential, transcending all 
else in the range of its operations, both ir» 
the mental and material spheres. 

♦For a more detailed treatment of this subject, the 
reader is referred to Hudson's "Law of Psychic Phenom- 
ena," to be had of any bookseller. 



Subconscious Mind, 141 

While the Soul is (for want of a better 
term) the "God principle," or the "God life" 
within us, it is not God, and never will be. 
The creature can never equal the creator, 
else being equal with God, he would be a 
God himself and there is now and always 
will be but one God. We must make this dis- 
tinction full and clear, for while the Soul 
does possess some of the attributes and pow- 
ers of God, it never can, in its most perfect 
state, be equal with Him. To hold that the 
Soul is essentially God is a serious error 
which involves others equally serious. 

The first and perhaps most important fac- 
ulty of the Soul, is that of "Intuition," 
which is the perception of fundamental Law 
or Truth, independent of the five physical 
senses, or of reason. It is the Soul's highest 
power and it is through it that the knowl- 
edge and perception of all divine or spiritual 
Truth, as well as the experiences and emo- 
tions of the Soul are brought over to con- 
sciousness. It is the way or means, and the 
only way or means whereby we can come in- 



142 The 

to a knowledge of God, or by which we can 
perceive spiritual Truth. 

It is through Intuition that man receives 
an intimation of wisdom, of knowledge and 
of truth which is beyond him, into which he 
may grow, if he will but heed and act on its 
promptings. It is the way in which God 
speaks to man, through which Divine wis- 
dom, knowledge and inspiration is received. 
It is the most transcendent and sublime at- 
tribute of the composite man. 

The faculty of Deductive Eeasoning be- 
longs also to the Soul, and is an attribute of 
God. It is reaching general conclusions 
from the instantaneous perception of the 
conclusion, or of general Laws and fixed 
principles — reasoning from a conclusion to 
particulars. The Subconscious mind cannot 
reason inductively. 

God cannot be said to reason inductively 
(a faculty of the Conscious mind) for the 
reason that such would imply a limitation of 
knowledge. His reasoning — if God can in- 
deed be said to reason — is deductively, from 



Subconscious Mind. 143 

an infinite knowledge of all Truth, all law 
and principle, and this faculty of the Soul 
is essentially divine. 

Memory is a faculty of the Soul, and is 
absolutely perfect. This is well demonstrat- 
ed in the condition known as "Hypnosis," 
where with the conscious mind in entire 
abeyance, memories of events which have 
passed entirely out of the range of the Con- 
scious mind can be readily recalled by the 
subject. Authentic instances are recorded 
where persons have spoken a language with 
which they were never familiar save through 
association in childhood. Memory is an ex- 
clusive faculty of the Soul, but its events 
can be called to consciousness through the 
faculty of Eecollection of the Conscious- 
mind. 

The Soul is the seat of the emotions. 
Love, Joy, Anger, Eemorse — emotions both 
good and bad emanate from it. This may 
seem a startling statement to those who have 
considered the Soul as being essentially pure 
and Divine and that only good is possible 



144 The 

from it, but the statement is true, as we 
shall see. 

It is amenable to the Law of Dictation or 
Suggestion, and this is a most important 
truth. We cannot understand the phenom- 
ena of life until we understand this great 
truth or Law. It explains many of the inner 
mysteries of life and teaches us how we are 
actuated and controlled in what we say and 
do. 

By reason of its material environment, 
the Soul is under the Law of Suggestion. 
While it was originally pure and divine, by 
reason of its being under the Law of Sug- 
gestion it becomes colored or tainted by the 
thoughts and beliefs of the parents from be- 
fore birth — commonly called heredity — and 
when it is ushered into thi6 world, it be- 
comes increasingly colored and tainted by 
the impressions made upon it through the 
suggestive character of its material sur- 
roundings, and as we come to understand 
this important truth, we can see how, in life, 
both good and bad can emanate from the 



Subconscious Mind, 145 

Soul and how it is that man is born in sin 
and needs washing before he can be clean. 

So long as the Soul inhabits this material 
house, so long is it under the Law of Sug- 
gestion and bound by that Law to act in con- 
formity with the character of the impres- 
sions made upon it. It cannot do otherwise, 
for the Law is absolute, though in consider- 
ing this we must take into account the modi- 
fying, neutralizing and changing influences 
of contrary suggestions, in order to correctly 
understand the operations of this Law; but 
while the Soul is bound by the Law to ex- 
press itself, and we, in consequence are 
bound to act, from the impressions made 
upon it, we have the power to choose the 
character and nature of the Suggestions or 
Impressions upon which it must and will, at 
all times act. Man is a "free moral agent/' 
with full power to choose; and understand- 
ing this, and intelligently and consciously 
choosing the nature and character of the 
Suggestions upon which the Subconscious 
mind acts, he chooses and determines what 
10 



146 The 

his life, his success, his health and his hap- 
piness, as well as what his future destiny 
shall be. 

Still another faculty of the Soul is that 
which is known as "Telekinetic Energy" — 
the power of the Soul over matter, even to 
transcending the laws of nature. Instances 
are on record where man, through this power 
which is resident in the Soul, has moved 
ponderable objects with and without con- 
tact, and in the Orient there are religious 
sects who in their ceremonies, walk over 
white hot stones in the bare feet, without so 
much as a scar. The common experiment 
of two or more persons lifting another with 
the fingers illustrates this same power, and 
the rappings, moving of tables, slate writing 
and materializations accredited as "spirit 
phenomena" can be accomplished through 
this same agenc} r . 

All power as manifested through man, is 
resident in the Soul, and the more fully this 
is recognized, the more the powers of the 
Soul, and the Laws under which it operates 



Subconscious Mind. 147 

are understood, the more and better will we 
be able to use them for our material and 
spiritual advancement. The more intelli- 
gence employed in their use, the greater and 
more effective will be the results obtained 
and the more will we discover the vast possi- 
bilities which are within our reach and be 
able to avail ourselves of them. 

Faith is an attribute of the Soul. This 
is the Faith that the Lord Jesus Christ 
taught and insisted upon, and is the only 
faith which will accomplish that which He 
said. It is the conviction or evidenec of 
things not seen, but fully believed and ac- 
cepted by the Soul. It is this faith of which 
He said, "According to your faith be it unto 
you/' and again, "All things are possible to 
him who believeth." He who has this faith 
can, without doubt, do that which he be- 
lieves he can do. 

Telepathic power is also an attribute of 
the Soul. Whether we are conscious of it or 
not, Soul communicates with Soul, and Tel- 
epathy is the normal means of communica- 



148 The Subconscious Mind. 

tion between Subconscious minds. The more 
we, through a recognition of this fact, come 
to look for, and cultivate this faculty, the 
more will we realize its existence and be 
able to employ it. 



The— 

Subconscious 

Mind ; 

Its 

Functions 

And 

Operations. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

In a previous chapter, we have seen that 
"Thought" is the tool with which we shape 
our life and destiny, and now we discover 
that which is yet back of Thought ; the deep, 
underlying and most potential factor in hu- 
man existence — the Subconscious mind or 
Soul, with its transcendent powers and in- 
telligence. 

We need to analyze the underlying causes 
which prompt and promote action and con- 
scious thought as well. Until we do this, we 
cannot fathom motive or impulse, nor can 
we account for much that we do. Those 
who are observing will note the silent and 
ofttimes strong influences impelling them 
this way or that. They feel inclined to do a 
certain thing, but cannot tell why. Espe- 
cially is this true of woman, for the reason 
that her higher or Soul faculties are less 
blunted by contact with the coarser things 

151 



152 The Subconscious Mind ; 

of material life than man's and because as a 
rale she is more intuitive, more sensitive to 
impressions and more ready to act on them, 
though there are marked exceptions to this. 

In the whole phenomena of life, we must 
always take into consideration the great cen- 
tral fact that the Subconscious mind, and 
therefore man is ruled and controlled by 
Suggestion. This is one of the most import- 
ant and far-reaching of all Psychological 
truths, and must never for a moment be lost 
sight of. When this is understood, then the 
next important question is, how do sugges- 
tions reach the Subconscious mind, from 
whence do they come ; and, as man acts from 
the impressions made upon the Subconscious 
mind, can he govern and control the char- 
acter of the Suggestions or impressions from 
which he must act? 

First ; granting that man has the power to 
formulate Thought, Suggestions or Impres- 
sions are made upon the Subconscious mind 
by our own Thought, and our Thought may 
be the product of logic and reason, or it may 



its Functions and Operations. 153 

be the result of the Conscious or Uncon- 
scious impressions made upon the Subcon- 
scious mind, through the five senses or 
through other agencies, rising to conscious- 
ness. While we are trying to determine where 
our Impressions come from, we are at the 
same time learning where our Thought 
comes from. All Thought comes through im- 
pressions made upon the Subconscious mind, 
and as these impressions come over to con- 
sciousness, we turn them over in our mind, 
analyze them, reason on them, and the con- 
clusions formed then become autosugges- 
tions upon which the Subconscious mind 
acts. 

Second; Impressions are received from 
the Thoughts of others which reach us 
through the intention of the sender, or 
through the thought being connected with 
us in his mind, and we may or may not be 
conscious of the fact that we are being influ- 
enced by another. Thus are impressions made 
through Thought consciously connected 
with us by the thinker, either with or with- 



154 The Subconscious Mind ; 

out the intention of influencing us, for be 
it remembered, the intention to have a 
Thought reach another need not be present 
with the thinker ; the simple fact of connect- 
ing the Thought with the person causing 
them to receive it. 

I hold it to be a Law, that a Thought 
formulated and sent with the intention of 
reaching another, or if connected with him, 
as in an imaginary conversation, will always 
reach its destination. I believe this to be ab- 
solutely true, but whether the Thought sent 
will rise to Consciousness; whether it will 
be consciously recognized as a distinct 
Thought of another by the recipient; 
whether it will come into expression as the 
Thought of the recipient, he believing it to 
be his own Thought; and whether he will 
recognize the Thought or impression and act 
upon it, or refuse to act upon it though rec- 
ognizing it, are entirely different questions. 
Because this distinction has not been recog- 
nized, and because we have judged whether 
the Thought reached the person, by his ree- 



its Functions and Operations. 155 

ognition of it, or his acting upon it, we have 
been led into the error of questioning the 
power of Thought. Settle it in your mind 
that Thought is bound to reach its object, 
but whether it will be recognized and acted 
upon is altogether another question — and 
depends. 

Third; the Subconscious mind is con- 
tinually influenced by the Thoughts we un- 
consciously attract to us, they being in gen- 
eral such as correspond to our prevailing 
mental attitude. These impressions are 
made entirely unconscious to the Conscious 
mind, and herein lies the secret of many of 
the ills of life, of the failures and much of 
the sickness that comes to us. To make this 
plain would require more space than is at 
my disposal, but I know it to be a fact, and 
a very potent one. My personal experience 
and my practice have demonstrated it. 

Fourth; the inspirational influences and 
higher Thoughts which produce impressions 
upon the Subconscious mind, come to us 
from the Spiritual realm. And here I do 



156 The Subconscious Mind ; 

not wish to be misunderstood. I do not re- 
fer to the so-called spirit communications of 
the day, bnt to Thoughts which we may at- 
tract to us through desire, or a correspond- 
ing mental attitude, or through God's min- 
istering angels or spirits, as is clearly taught 
in Hebrews 1, 14: "Are they (the angels) 
not all ministering spirits sent forth to min- 
ister to those who shall be heirs to salva- 
tion?" See also Matt. XVIII, 10, and 
Psalms XXXIV, 7. 

This is not the so-called communication 
of departed spirits with those still upon 
earth, but is the ministration of things that 
are for our highest spiritual good by God's 
ministering angels, who communicate to us 
spiritual things through spiritual means, 
but this highest and most profound minis- 
tration of Divine Wisdom — this fuller reve- 
lation of God Himself — can only come to 
those who have been made "heirs of God and 
joint heirs with Christ, — members of the 
Eoyal Family, through a belief on the Lord 
Jesus Christ as their Saviour; and then, the 



its Functions and Operations. 157 

efficacy of this ministration depends upon 
our recognition of, our desire for, and our 
opening ourselves to it. 

Through a recognition of this great truth, 
and by maintaining a receptive attitude, the 
ministrations of God*s ministering Spirits, as 
well as truths and inspiration of the highest 
order will flow in to us, and we will at times 
recognize the source of these higher 
Thoughts and Inspirations, but settle it in 
your mind, that those who are God's minis- 
tering servants to us do not stoop to rap- 
pings, slate writing or materializations, but 
that their ministrations come to us through 
impressions made upon the Subconscious 
mind or Soul, and that these impressions are 
distinct and effective in the degree in which 
we desire them, recognize their source and 
open ourselves to them. 

The phenomena witnessed in so-called 
spiritualistic demonstrations cannot be de- 
nied by any who are not wilfully blinded, 
bearing in mind that there is both genuine 
and fraudulent demonstration, but the larger 



158 The Subconscious Mind ; 

part of it can now be scientifically accounted 
for by the known powers of the Soul, and 
when the powers and attributes of the Soul 
are more fully known, I believe there will 
be very little of that which is now called 
"Spirit phenomena'' that cannot be ac- 
counted for in this way. 

That spirits have manifested themselves 
to man in the past, I admit, for we have the 
Bible record of it. That they do so now, 
may be possible; but, where the phenomena 
is genuine, that the} 7 are the persons they 
represent themselves to be, I deny. They 
are deceiving spirits. But as this question 
has come in incidentally and I have no in- 
tention of discussing it, I will leave it with 
the simple reference to 1st Timothy, IV, 1. 
"In the latter times some shall depart from 
the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, 
and doctrines of devils." 

Through a careful analysis of the forego- 
ing, we will discover that back of all 
Thought, back of all Impulse and back of 
all Acts, is that unceasing, never sleeping 



its Functions and Operations. 159 

and potential intelligence, the Snbconscions 
mind, or Soul, and that consciously or un- 
consciously, we are influenced and governed 
by the Impressions or Suggestions received 
by it. That this process goes on unceasingly 
and for the most part unconsciously to us, 
is a great truth which is only faintly recog- 
nized by the few; and yet, here is the con- 
trolling factor — the very mainspring in our 
existence. Our desires, our impulses and 
our mental attitude are constantly undergo- 
ing changes, owing to this silent, unrecog- 
nized, but all-powerful agent; and we are 
unconsciously controlled by it , in the degree 
in which we fail to recognize its existence, 
and do not consciously govern the character 
of the Impressions or Suggestions which 
shall be made upon the Soul. 

Here is the vital point : We are governed 
and controlled by the Subconscious mind 
through the impressions made upon it in the 
ways noted, whether we recognize it, or are 
conscious of it or not, and we determine the 
character of these impressions by the charac- 



160 The Subconscious Mind ; 

ter of our prevailing mental attitude. When 
we are in a negative condition, we are like a 
rudderless ship at sea, carried about hither 
and thither by the ever changing tide of the 
uncontrolled impressions which are made 
upon it ; but when we assume the positive at- 
titude, we then determine the character of 
the impressions from which we shall act, 
through governing our Thought and our 
mental attitude consciously and with intent. 

If we would determine the character of 
the Impressions upon which we shall act, we 
must first of all recognize the fact that we 
are controlled by the Suggestions consciously 
or unconsciously made upon the Subcon- 
scious mind. Then, we must consciously 
govern the character of those Suggestions or 
Impressions, through assuming a positive 
attitude, choosing the character of our 
Thought and our habitual or prevailing 
mental attitude, for, bear in mind, one must 
and will correspond to the other. 

Eemember, the Law through which both 
conscious and unconscious Suggestions act 



its Functions and Operations. 161 

upon the Subconscious mind is absolute but 
that there are all sorts of things which 
change or modify the impressions made, and 
consequently affect the result. By a recog- 
nition and understanding of this Law, we 
can measure and understand that which op- 
erates to produce seeming failure when em- 
ploying Suggestion, and by the same means, 
change or remove these modifying influences 
and the effect of adverse or undesirable Sug- 
gestion. \ 



u 



The— 

Subconscious 

Mind ; 

General 

Observations. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

That the Subconscious mind or Soul is 
the most important factor in human exist- 
ence, will not be questioned by any who have 
come to understand its powers and field of 
operation. Though man for the most part 
is in almost entire ignorance of its exist- 
ence and knows even less of its operations, 
here is the thing by which he is absolutely 
governed and controlled in his mental, phy- 
sical and material existence — here is the sub- 
tile agency through which he is uncon- 
sciously controlled by himself and by others. 

It dominates our very existence, in spite 
of the fact that we fail to recognize it or 
that we exalt the Conscious mind to the po- 
sition of ruler. The average person would 
be appalled if he could know to what extent 
he is dominated by others through the cease- 
less and unconscious activity of the Subcon- 
scious mind. How do you know that a 

165 



166 The Subconscious Mind ; 

Thought or an Impression yon have is your 
own? How do you know whether the 
Thought or Impression which comes to you 
is not the Thought of another influencing 
you, either with or without intent ? 

We act from Thoughts and impressions 
made upon the Subconscious mind which we 
take for granted originate within ourselves, 
when in fact they do not, but are the silent 
Thought or Suggestion of another. It does 
not of necessity follow that the Thoughts 
and Impressions upon which we act are 
made upon us intentionally by others, as 
there are but few who know or understand 
the intelligent use of the mental powers in 
this direction. By placing ourselves in har- 
mony with certain class or quality of 
Thoughts we get them and act from the im- 
pressions thus made upon the Subconscious 
mind, and this process goes on so quietly and 
the workings of it are so subtile, that we are 
rarely conscious of it. 

There are two facts which we can not 
evade and must face: First, that we act 



General Observations. 167 

from Impressions made upon the Subcon- 
scious mind; and second, these impressions 
are made upon the Subconscious mind by 
our own Conscious mind, or by others, 
either consciously or unconsciously. A 
close analysis and an understanding of 
what is involved in this proposition will 
show us very clearly that in the ordinary 
walks of life, the average person is actually 
ruled and dominated by others, and is not 
choosing for himself, though in all sincerity 
he may think he is. To intelligently shape 
life, we must intelligently choose for our- 
selves and the wisdom of our choice depends 
upon knowledge and the development of our 
higher or Spiritual faculties. 

We must remember that the Subconscious 
mind is dominated by Suggestion, and that 
it accepts and acts upon Suggestion or Im- 
pressions of which we are not conscious, but 
that the character of these impressions can 
be governed by the character of our 
Thoughts or purposes and our habitual men- 
tal attitude, as the unconscious impressions 



168 The Subconscious Mind ; 

made will harmonize and correspond with 
the Thoughts we hold. 

The secret of all real progress and of fruit- 
ful life-expression is in choosing the char- 
acter of our Thoughts, which also involves 
the choosing of the character of the impres- 
sions which shall be made upon the Subcon- 
scious mind. In the degree in which we con- 
trol our Thoughts and the Impressions from 
which we act do we consciously direct the 
current and issues of life and in that degree 
do we also gain self-control. Before we can 
control others we must first control our- 
selves 

We must recognize the fact that unless we 
assume a positive attitude — stand at the 
helm ourselves — we are at the mercy of all 
sorts of floating or designing Thought or 
Suggestion. While the negative person is 
technically a "free moral agent," as a matter 
of fact, he is ruled and dominated by others, 
either by accident or design, because he is 
not exercising his prerogative of choice. 

It is of the utmost importance that we un- 



General Observations. 169 

der stand this far-reaching and all-important 
factor in life. Only in this way can we in- 
telligently shape our lives and say what shall 
come to us. But bear in mind, we either 
shape and control life for ourselves or allow 
others to do it for us, and it does not matter 
whether we are conscious of it or not. the 
fact remains unaltered. 

And until we understand and realize how 
it is that impressions are made upon the 
Subconscious mind through direct Sugges- 
tion and through the Suggestive character 
of the occurences of each moment, as well 
as through the silent influences of Thought 
Impressions, and how we act from these im- 
pressions continually, we cannot consciously 
or intelligently shape or govern life for our- 
selves. 

How many there are in this world who are 
absolutely living a life that is dictated and 
controlled by others almost from beginning 
to end simply because they do not under- 
stand that which is fundamental in deter- 
mining their life ! I know some who have 



170 The Subconscious Mind ; 

stood appalled when they first came to rec- 
ognize this great fact and conld begin to 
understand the subtile and far-reaching ac- 
tivities of the Subconscious mind and how 
their lives were unconsciously guided and 
controlled through the operations of this 
great intelligence unconsciously to them- 
selves. 

When this mighty truth begins to dawn 
upon the mind and there comes some reali- 
zation of the workings of this great and po- 
tent intelligence which is within, well may 
the individual stand with fear and trembling 
before the responsibility which rests upon 
him! Life, and the shaping of life is no 
mere pastime, but a stern and vital reality 
in which each is working out his destiny, 
either Consciously and intelligently, or Un- 
consciously and in Ignorance. It is only as 
we come into a recognition of this great 
Truth that we come to see to what extent it 
is true that the choosing of what shall come 
to us lays absolutely with ourselves and of 
how important it is that we should Con- 



General Observations. 171 

sciously and Intelligently choose that which 
shall determine the trend and issues of life. 
Whe?i we come into a vital realization of this 
potent truth in the Soul and it becomes a 
deep-seated conviction, we shall see that we 
are responsible for what comes into our lives 
and that we can in no way shift the respon- 
sibility upon others. Ignorance does not ex- 
cuse us and is never to be desired. 

To be "forewarned is to be forearmed," 
and as we come to understand how thor- 
oughly we are under the dominion of these 
Laws, we shall also come to realize how, and 
in what way, we can control our own lives 
and protect ourselves from the undesired in- 
fluences of others. We are not left to the 
mercy of the ever-changing and undesirable 
influences of others or of that which will 
come to us through the Suggestive character 
of our surroundings. But unless we become 
positive and stand at the helm, we certainly 
are ruled, dominated and controlled by these 
constantly operating influences. If we as- 
sume control ourselves, we can as surely de- 



172 The Subconscious Mind ; 

termine the character of that which shall 
come to us and at the same time exercise a 
beneficient influence over others through the 
positive character of our own mental atti- 
tude, for it is the positive person, the posi- 
tive attitude that makes the strongest im- 
pression upon the mind of another. 

And here another important consideration 
comes in: Others are influencing and con- 
trolling us in the degree in which we are 
negative, because we are open and receptive 
to their influence. When we become positive, 
we are influencing and controlling others in 
the degree in which they are negative. The 
positive person is also subject to the influ- 
ences of others and to impressions received 
from his surroundings, but he intelligently 
chooses and determines the character of that 
which he will receive and act upon either 1 
through conscious volition or through the 
protecting influences of his prevailing men- 
tal attitude — the Law of Self-preservation. 

"No man liveth unto himself" is a divine 
Truth pregnant with meaning. Consciously 



General Observations. 173 

or unconsciously we are affecting others 
through the unceasing operations of this 
great and potential intelligence within us, 
hence the necessity of our maintaining that 
attitude which will not only enable us to in- 
telligently fashion and control our own 
lives, but exert the most salutary and benefi- 
cient influence over others. The more we 
consciously and intelligently use this great 
power within us for the good of others, the 
more will we reap good ourselves, for this is 
the Law. "It is more blessed to give than 
to receive." 

One of the most important points to be 
observed in all questions affecting Material 
and Spiritual life and in the treating of dis- 
ease, is the very great and subtile part played 
by unconscious Suggestion, or the uncon- 
scious activities of the Subconscious mind. 
Remember, these impressions no matter as 
to their source, come to our consciousness, 
when we are at all conscious of them, as our 
own Thoughts, and we do not realize their 
origin, nor do we question it, until we come 



174 The Subconscious Mind ; 

into a knowledge of the Laws governing the 
activities of the Dual Mind. 

While we cannot always determine the ori- 
gin or source of the Thoughts or Impres- 
sions which come to us, we can and should 
choose what Thoughts and Suggestions we 
will entertain. One of the deepest studies 
in the treatment of disease is to determine 
the part played by the Unconscious Auto- 
suggestion of the patient and to what extent 
it is neutralizing or counteracting the effect 
of the Suggestions given. The principle or 
Law is absolute, but there are conditions and 
neutralizing agencies which must always be 
taken into consideration and overcome 
through the application of the same Laws. 

But it may be asked: if we are uncon- 
sciously influenced by Suggestions and Tin 
pressions received by the Subconscious mind, 
how are we to know, or how are we to guard 
ourselves from such as are undesirable? A 
very important question and one that should 
be answered as intelligently as possible with 
the light at our command. 



General Observations. 175 

In the first place, the fixed purpose, the 
prevailing mental attitude which we inten- 
tionally or unintentionally cultivate, will de- 
termine to a very great extent the character 
of the Impressions which will be received 
unconsciously by the Subconscious mind. 
The positive person, the one who is intelli- 
gently shaping his life, will attract to him- 
self that which is in correspondence with his 
fixed purpose and his prevailing mental atti- 
tude, while the negative person, the one who 
is not standing at the helm but is drifting, 
is by virtue of the same Law at the mercy of 
all floating Thought or Impressions. He 
attracts a little of everything to himeslf . but 
lacking in continuity of purpose, and being 
ignorant of the operations of the Law of At- 
traction, he is not "centered," he fails to hold 
to any specific line of Thought or purpose 
long enough to produce any perceptible ef- 
fect, and as a consequence, he becomes one 
of that vast army of people who are doing 
something, but nothing in particular, just 
"drifting with the tide" and rarely succeed- 



176 The Subconscious Mind ; 

ing in anything he undertakes. It is impos- 
sible to escape these potential influences in 
any way whatever, but we can bring them 
under our control and say what shall influ- 
ence us, through the knowledge of the opera- 
tions of these Laws, and through intelli- 
gently choosing for ourselves. 

The power and effectiveness of Suggestion 
and Autosuggestion will be more fully con- 
sidered in the following chapters, but the 
points I wish to emphasize here are that we 
are controlled by or through Impressions 
made upon the Subconscious mind; that 
these Impressions are made both Consciously 
and Unconsciously and that we can in no 
way escape from them; that while essentially 
man is a "free moral agent" he is not exer- 
cising his prerogative of choice in the ordi- 
nary walks of life, but is dominated and con- 
trolled by the Suggestions and influences of 
others unless he is consciously choosing for 
himself. 

While Thought is the "Key-note" of life 
and a Thought precedes every act, here we 



General Observations. 177 

see how and why we are controlled by it, as 
well as that which is back of Thought. The 
Subconscious mind is back of all and its ex- 
pression is the result of impressions made 
upon it taking form in Thought, and 
Thought taking form in action. It comes to 
dominate in life-expression and illuminate 
the faculties of the Conscious mind, only in 
the degree in which it is recognized and de- 
veloped. 



12 



Suggestion — 

Defined, 

And 

The 

Way 

It 

Operates. 



CHAPTEE XV. 

In the previous chapters we have seen that 
the Subconscious Mind acts upon Suggestion 
— that it is under the Law of Suggestion. 
and that we are impelled to every act 
through a Suggestion or an Impression made 
upon the Subconscious mind. 

While the term "Suggestion" is one uni- 
versally employed, it is but little understood 
and to the average person is but a phrase 
conveying an indefinite meaning. The Po- 
tency and Power of Suggestion, the Laws 
governing in its unceasing operations as well 
as the nature of Suggestion, its intelligent 
use and the conditions most favorable for 
obtaining the best results from it are as lit- 
tle understood by the masses as were the pos- 
sibilties of electricity by Franklin in his day. 

What is a "Suggestion?" Anything which 
makes an impression upon the mind is a 
Suggestion. It may be a word, a look, a mo- 

181 



182 Suggestion Defined, and 

tion, a person, a thought or many other 
things. It may be Impressions received by 
the Subconscious mind from the vast ocean 
of Thought in which we live, or from the 
realm of the Spiritual world. At every turn 
we are met by a Suggestion and it is as im- 
possible to escape from Suggestion itself, as 
it is to escape from the ceaseless activities of 
the Subconscious mind. It is everywhere 
present and in life-expression we are as as- 
suredly dominated by the Law of Sugges- 
tion, as by the necessity of breathing and 
this whether waking or sleeping. 

It has been truly said that "Suggestion 
rules the world." Traced down to its last 
and final analysis, Life-expression is the re- 
sult or consequence of Suggestion, and this 
being true it is evident that if we would 
change the character of our Physical, Men- 
tal or Material conditions, we must in some 
way govern the fundamental or producing 
cause. While it is true that we act from our 
Thoughts and in governing the character of 
our Thoughts we determine the character of 



the Way it Operates. 183 

what comes to us, it will be borne in mind 
that every Thought is a Suggestion and also 
that the source of much of the Suggestive 
Impressions from which we act reach yet 
back of the realm of Thought and that Sug- 
gestion is therefore broader and more com- 
prehensive than Thought. 

For a general definition of Suggestion in 
its application to Therapeutic work, we may 
say that "a Suggestion is a Thought formu- 
lated and expressed by one person for the 
purpose of influencing another," but this 
does not by any means properly define Sug- 
gestion in its broad and true sense. An 
iinexpressed Thought is as much of a Sug- 
gestion as if spoken to the person, and the 
impression thus made may be more effective 
for the reason that he will be inclined to con- 
sider it as his own Thought and willingly 
act upon it of his own volition, unquestioned 
and unchallenged. 

Thought and Suggestion are so closely al- 
lied and inter-related that at times it seems 
difficult to separate them and it will be borne 



184 Suggestion Defined, and 

in mind that what has been said in reference 
to Thought in previous chapters obtains, 
only with increased force in the realm of 
Suggestion. A Thought may be the result 
of a Suggestion or a Suggestion may be the 
result of a Thought, but in either case they 
create impressions upon the Subconscious 
mind from which the act springs. 

The two most potential factors in our ex- 
istence are the Subconscious mind and Sug- 
gestion, bearing in mind the inter-relation 
of Thought and Suggestion. When we un- 
derstand the Faculties and operations of the 
one and the nature and potency of the other, 
together with the Laws governing them, we 
have the key to all Life-expression, to health, 
happiness and success. 

We must recognize — we must realize, the 
fact that everything which in any way ap- 
peals to the senses is a Suggestion and that 
we are consciously or unconsciously im- 
pressed by the Suggestive character of every- 
thing with which we come in contact or 
which comes within the range of our vision. 



the Way it Operates. 185 

The idea is prevalent that a Suggestion is 
only the word spoken to another, but this is 
not true. Everything — anything which 
makes an impression upon the mind, 
whether it be through the five senses or oth- 
erwise, is a Suggestion. 

We eat, we drink, we breathe, we walk, 
sleep and act solely through Suggestion and 
when we come to recognize and realize this, 
we then begin to see how thoroughly we are 
dominated by Suggestive Impressions and of 
what paramount importance it is that we 
should determine the nature and character 
of the Suggestions from which our Life- 
expression flows, through conscious choice. 
For let it be remembered that the activities 
of the Subconscious mind, from which all 
acts spring, must at all times correspond and 
be in harmony with our prevailing attitude, 
which is in itself the strongest kind of a Sug- 
gestion. 

So potent and powerful is Suggestion, and 
the results which I have seen obtained from 
its use so far enter what is considered the 



186 Suggestion Defined, and 

realm of the miraculous, that I frankly say 
I do not know what is impossible of accom- 
plishment through its intelligent and per- 
sistent application, but there are bounds be- 
yond which it is at least difficult to pass. 
The Law of Self-preservation — the expres- 
sion of a faculty inherent in the Soul, is ever 
operative, and while the Subconscious mind 
is under the Law of Suggestion and is 
bound to act upon Suggestions given when 
they enter unchallenged and unopposed, it 
will refuse to accept or act upon a Sugges- 
tion which is in violation of this Law of 
Self-preservation, and as is well known by 
those who have investigated, a person in 
"Hypnosis" will resent and refuse a Sugges- 
tion which does violence to his fixed princi- 
ples or convictions, though as I have said, 
knowing- the power and potency of Sugges- 
tion from actual practice, I am not prepared 
to say what is impossible, when Suggestion 
is properly and persistently employed. 

It is well to remember that there is no 
good that cannot be perverted and no power 



the Way it Operates. 187 

that cannot be misused and abused, but our 
safety does not lie in ignorance, but in an 
intelligent understanding. Our advantage 
is not in avoiding a thing, but in under- 
standing it and how to use it for the good of 
ourselves and others. We might as well say 
that because electricity kills we will have 
nothing to do with it. Our safety and well- 
being always lies in knowledge and intelli- 
gence. Ignorance means degeneration and 
retrogression. 

Our fixed purposes and Ideals, if persist- 
ed in, are the first and most powerful Sug- 
gestions and will take precedence over oth- 
ers. These become an "Auto- Suggestion," 
which is a Suggestion given to ones self, and 
an Auto- Suggestion is one of the most diffi- 
cult things to overcome. An unconscious 
Autosuggestion may become so deeply seated 
as to require much and persistent conscious 
effort to overcome or change. I have had 
patients in whom I could distinctly discern 
the unconscious workings of Autosuggestion 
when they were making the strongest con- 



188 Suggestion Defined, and 

scions effort to follow my Suggestions, and 
herein lies the secret of much seeming fail- 
ure in the application of Suggestion. But 
instead of indicating failure, it only empha- 
sises the potency and power of Suggestion in 
two ways; first in demonstrating the 
strength and power of the Autosuggestion 
and. second in being able to overcome the 
deeply seated impressions produced by the 
Autosuggestion, by the persistent use of pro- 
per Suggestion. It requires repeated and 
persistent Suggestion to overcome these 
deeply seated impressions and when we rec- 
ognize the fact that one's Autosuggestion is 
the more powerful and. that the strongest 
Suggestion will prevail until broken by a 
stronger, we will see that they can only be 
overcome or counteracted by repeated and 
persistent effort on the part of ones self or 
the Suggestionist. 

Suggestion gathers force in its repetition. 
The only way you commit a poem to memory 
is through constant iteration. Beading it 
over once or twice will not do it, but the 



the Way it Operates. 189 

more you read it, the more you become fa- 
miliar with it, the more it becomes fixed up- 
on the mind so you can repeat it from mem- 
ory. This is Suggestion. The oftener it is 
repeated and the more energy employed in 
giving the Suggestion whether by ones self 
or another, the deeper and more lasting the 
impressions made and the more effective the 
results. One can repeat a lie so often that 
he finallv comes to believe it true. 



Suggestion — 

Applied 

To 

Mental 

And 

Physical 

Disabilities. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

In treating all Physical and Mental ail- 
ments, Suggestion is the underlying factor 
in the cure, no matter what method em- 
ployed, be it Medicine, Osteopathy, Chris- 
tian Science, Mental Science or what not. 
Every dose of medicine and every movement 
or manipulation carries a Suggestion wiih 
it, and as has been well said by an eminent 
Chicago Physician — Dr. William II. Hol- 
combe, ex-President of the American Insti- 
tute of Homeopathy — "To be certain that 
drugs have ever exerted any curative action 
whatever, it is necessary to eliminate every 
mental element of cure from the case. Let 
there be no opinion or thought about the 
matter, no faith, no imagination, no hope, 
no expectation of result. When all these 
causes are absent, the result may possibly be 
the effect of the medicine." 

Suggestion is the means or cause which is 

13 193 



194 Suggestion Applied to Mental 

back of all cures effected and every intelli- 
gent and progressive Doctor of Medicine rec- 
ognizes this fact, in a greater or less degree. 
While the materialistic tendencies of his pa- 
tients demand what they consider a material 
remedy — something they can see, taste and 
feel, the Physician feels hound to prescribe 
something which may or may not be medi- 
cine, but he is sure to accompany it with a 
good dose of Suggestion, and the most suc- 
cessful M. D. is the one who makes the most 
intelligent use of Suggestion, even if it be 
accompanied by the administration of sweet- 
ened water and bread pills. They are on the 
right track and all they need is the courage 
of their conviction. And yet, can we blame 
them? They know that the people ary not 
yet educated up to natural methods of heal- 
ing and demand pills and powders and they 
also know that unless they administer some- 
thing which their patients at least believe is 
medicine, they will be dismissed as being in- 
competent and another emploj^ed who will 



and Physical Disabilities. 195 

indulge them in their ignorance. When peo- 
ple want to be duped, and will have it no 
other way, can we blame one for duping 
them? P. T. Barnum was worldly wise 
when he said "the American people want to 
be humbugged and I might as well humbug 
them as anyone else." But here, as in all 
things else, our .salvation and best good lies 
in Intelligence and education rather than in 
ignorance, and as the public become better 
informed in the underlying principles of 
life, they will demand and receive more ra- 
tional and natural methods of treating their 
physical ailments and will have less of them 
to be treated. 

The philosophy of Suggestion in treating 
Mental and Physical ailments will be better 
appreciated when it is understood that all 
the functions and sensations of the body are 
under the control of the Subconscious mind, 
that It is under the Law of Suggestion and 
in its activities, can be controlled by Sugges- 
tion. Now, with the functions and sensa- 
tions of the body under the control of the 



196 Suggestion Affiled to Mental 

Subconscious mind, and with the Subcon- 
scious mind controlable by or through Sug- 
gestion, we see at once that through intelli- 
gent Suggestion, any of the organs of the 
body can be stimulated, circulation increased 
and a right activity brought about in all 
parts of the physical being by proper Sug- 
gestions. Here you have the theory of the 
whole philosophy of healing in a nut-shell — 
if you can ?ee it. 

But do not overlook the fact that there are 
always conditions to be observed in treating 
for the cure of disease. There are certain 
fundamental Laws of nature, and conditions 
which must be complied with. Disease is 
the result of a violation of Law. Complying 
with the simple Laws of life, or conditions 
of health and the intelligent use of Sugges- 
tion, there are but few forms of diseases 
which cannot be cured. 

And with the growing tendency of think- 
ing people to break away from the old drug 
methods of treatment towards that which is 
in harmony and in accord with nature, it is 



and Physical Disabilities. 197 

well to note that cures brought about in this 
•way are more permanent, for the reason that 
it is Nature's own method of cure, devoid of 
any artificial stimulant, and while the Phy- 
sician is ostensibly doing the work, in reality 
he is making the patient do it and the re- 
sults obtained are perfectly natural from 
which there will be no relapse, except 
through a repeated violation of Law. And 
when the patient recovers, he knows how he 
has regained his health and how to retain 
and maintain it. 

The field covered by Suggestion is as 
broad as life itself. There is no sphere in 
life where the operation of the Law of Sug- 
gestion and the activities of the Subcon- 
scious mind cannot be employed to infinite 
advantage. In shaping the course of life, in 
determining our measure of success and our 
happiness, in healing disease, in eradicating 
undesirable habits and traits of character 
and in bringing about a right mental atti- 
tude or condition, Suggestion can be util- 
ized to the greatest advantage and results 



198 Suggestion Applied to Mental 

can be secured through the intelligent use 
of Suggestion and Auto suggestion which 
are attainable in no other way. 

While in my practice I employ the Mag- 
netic or Life-forces of the body, which is a 
most powerful aid when intelligently used, 
my reliance is always upon Suggestion as 
the chief and most potent factor in bring- 
ing about the cure of any disease. The re- 
sults I have obtained — and the results at- 
tained by all intelligent practitioners of 
Suggestive Therapeutics — tax the credulity 
of the average Medical physician. In fact, 
many of the advanced among them refuse 
to believe these results possible. 

That severe and chronic constipation can 
be readily cured and a regular movement of 
the bowels secured in a short time without 
the use of one drop of medicine, wholly 
through Suggestion, is a fact which it is dif- 
ficult to induce even the laity to believe, 
and yet it is being done every day. One of 
the most pleasant features of a cure of this 
kind is that when a person is cured in this 



and Physical Disabilities. 199 

way, he understands perfectly how the cure 
is brought about and is easily able to control 
this important function himself by the in- 
telligent use of Autosuggestion. 

In the treatment of all diseases peculiar 
to women — making no exceptions, and even 
in Child-birth, there is no method of treat- 
ment known which will produce such prompt 
and permanent relief or cure, as the treat- 
ment by Suggestion. This class of diseases, 
the regular Physician has found himself un- 
able to cope with to any degree of satisfac- 
tion and as a result, comes the too common 
recourse to the knife. 

When women come to realize what this 
mode of treatment means to them and when 
through an understanding of the great pos- 
sibilities it has in store for them they de- 
mand intelligent and scientific treatment, 
the field of Suggestive Therapeutics will be 
more fully occupied by practitioners of a 
higher order of intelligence, these ailments 
will be more intelligently and successfully 
treated and cured and the number of opera- 



200 Suggestion Applied to Mental 

tions will be reduced to the minimum — and 
God e peed the day ! 

Some have an idea that Suggestion is only 
efficacious in the mild and simple forms of 
diseases, but there is no physical or mental 
ailment which cannot be either permanently 
cured or geatly benefitted by the intelligent 
use of Suggestion, and especially is this true 
if the Physician understands the Laws 
governing the Magnetic forces and how to 
apply them in treatment. It must be borne 
in mind that the practitioner of Suggestive 
Therapeutics is called upon to treat almost 
exclusively, those who have exhausted every 
means within their reach — the old, hard and 
chronic cases which have many times been 
given up by the Medical fraternity, and 
when this is taken into consideration it will 
be found that the high percentage of his 
cures is simply remarkable. Could he have 
the opportunity of treating the same aver- 
age as the M. D., his failures would be small 
indeed. 

In all forms of Mental trouble Suggestion 



and Physical Disabilities. 201 

is the Ideal mode of treatment. The powers 
of Recollection, Concentration, and the Will 
can be strengthened: strength and force of 
Character can be obtained and any or all of 
the Mental faculties can be stimulated to in- 
creased activity and strengthened through 
Suggestion and Autosuggestion. Melan- 
cholia, Morbid Thoughts, Fear and Worry 
can be dispelled in the same way and in fact, 
there is no other way of treating these Men- 
tal troubles but by Suggestion. Wonderful 
results can be accomplished in Insanity 
through the Suggestive treatment and when 
the day arrives that the mentally deranged 
are scientifically treated by the Suggestive 
methods, there will be fewer hopeless cases 
and many will be spared from the fate which 
now usually awaits those who are thus af- 
flicted. 

All habits are especially amenable to treat- 
ment by Suggestion. The Liquor, Tobacco, 
Morphine and Opium habits can be success- 
fully handled with every probability of the 
cure being permanent. 



202 Suggestion Applied to Mental 

The great possibilities of Suggestion in 
healing disease and in mental and moral cul- 
ture, and the ignorance upon the subject 
among a very large proportion of the people, 
together with its importance as related to 
the well-being of all, and often to the very 
life of the individual, is my reason for in- 
troducing here wnat mav seem to some as a 
digression from the main thought of the 
book. Light is needed upon every hand and 
many are reaching out after knowledge 
which will be the means of emancipating 
them from sickness and disease as well as 
from poverty and unhappiness, and while I 
cannot give a full exposition of the philoso- 
phy of Physical and Mental healing in this 
brief space, it is my desire to awaken all who 
read to some degree of understanding of the 
possibilities which are attainable, and to 
stimulate them to further- research, as well 
as to the application of the knowledge they 
have gained. 

Ealph Waldo Trine is right when he says, 
"The Physician of the fututre will become 



and Physical Disabilities, 203 

the teacher." As the Law of Suggestion 
comes to ■ be better understood people will 
heal themselves, or better still, they will 
know how to prevent illness and disease, and 
the greatest and most lasting good the Phy- 
sician can do his patient is to instruct and 
teach him how to take care of himself and 
keep well, so that he will not need to have 
recourse to others for help. As long as we 
depend upon another in any way, we are 
weak and there should be no more need why 
one should apply to another for relief from 
Physical ailments than there is for his ap- 
plying for charity. Both are the result of 
ignorance and negligence — or indolence. 

The more we come to recognize the potency 
of Suggestion and understand the operations 
of the Subconscious mind, the more will we 
come to realize how we can become superior 
to all adverse Physical and Mental condi- 
tions. Health — abounding health is a per- 
fectly normal and natural condition and any 
departure from this standard proclaims the 
adverse character of the Suggestions which 



204 Suggestion Affiled to Mental, etc. 

are iiiiluenceing us, and a violation of Law. 
To be well and strong is the rightful por- 
tion of every human being and when princi- 
ples of Psychology are more generally 
taught and understood, people will begin to 
realize that the time has come for their 
emancipation from the dominion of ill- 
health, sickness and disease. The dawn is 
breaking; interest in the True Philosophy 
of life is more manifest every day and the 
thoughtful person is enquiring what he can 
do to shape his life more intelligently and 
make it conform more to his higher Ideals, 
as well as to secure freedom from the ills 
which flesh is not heir to. 



Laws — 

Governing 

In 

Every 

Sphere. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

The more we seek to penetrate the great 
problem of Life and try to analyze the vari- 
ous manifestations of all force or energy as 
it is related to Life-expression, both in the 
Spiritual and in the Material world, the 
more do we discover that in all their work- 
ings there is a method and harmony which 
eliminates all possibility of "happen" or 
"chance" and which indicates a scientific 
precision in the production of all the phe- 
nomena of Life, which is quite at variance 
with what we have been accustomed to think 
and believe. 

The evident certainty of an effect having 
a cause, of a certain thing or a certain acf> 
producing a certain effect, places the effect 
or result beyond the realm, of uncertainty or 
chance and brings us face to face with the 
fact that back of all, there are Laws estab- 
lished by the Infinite which are constantly 

207 



208 Laws Governing 

operative in every occurrence of Life, as well 
as in the whole universe of God. 

When we know the elements which enter 
into the initial step, and are able to measure 
the neutralizing agencies which are also the 
operation of yet other Laws, we can with 
much certainty predict the result or effect, 
and were we possessed of infinite knowledge 
of all Law, there would be no uncertainty 
about it whatever. The Chemist knows that 
by combining two elements, certain results 
follow and the Astronomer undtr stands so 
well how the movements of the planets are 
governed that he can with certainty predict 
their movements far into the future. And 
this is what we call Law. 

Nothing ever happens. There is a cause 
for whatever comes to us and all can be 
traced to the exact workings of Law. If I 
throw an apple up in the air, it falls to the 
earth again, but it goes up and comes down 
in obedience to Laws, one of Force and the 
other of Attraction. No matter which way 
we may turn, we face the fact that in every 



in Every Sphere. 209 

sphere of Life, and embracing the whole uni- 
verse there are Laws operating unceasingly 
and with infinite precision which at all times 
govern and determine what is and what 
shall be. 

When all is understood, it will be found 
that xhe whole phenomena of Life can be 
reduced to what is, in a sense, a Mathemati- 
cal proposition. Certain causes produce cer- 
tain effects, certain effects follow certain 
Thoughts and certain acts or movements and 
when we recognize the fact that for every 
effect there is a cause — that without the 
cause the effect could not appear, when we 
come to realize that every effect is the result 
of an initial or primal cause and follow this 
out to its legitimate termination as applied 
to every detail of Life, we are driven to the 
conclusion that bach of all there are Laws 
operating which determine the result or con- 
sequence of every Thought, every impulse, 
every act and of all that we do, and that 
these Laws are universal, governing and op- 
erating in every sphere of life — that we live 

14 



210 Laws Governing 

and move and have our being and that every- 
thing exists, in accordance with Law 

While all recognize the existence and op- 
eration of Laws in certain spheres, the uni- 
versality of Law and its unerring applica- 
tion to everything in the universe and to the 
detail and entirety of all Life-expression is 
not, by any means recognized or understood 
as it should be, but as we come tc realize 
this great truth and understand what is in- 
volved therein, we will come to realize and 
appreciate the necessity of an intelligent un- 
derstanding of the Laws which dominate our 
whole existence and by which we are gov- 
erned, so that we may place ourselves in 
harmony with them and know how we may 
use or operate them. 

This is a vital point and one that should 
receive the closest attention. We must real- 
ize that Law is inexorable as well as positive 
in its demands, that the product of a 
Thought, of Suggestion, or of the Impres- 
sion made upon the Subconscious mind must 
and will be determined by existing Laws. 



in Eveiy Sphere. 211 

Through violation of Law we suffer, 
through compliance with it we profit, but 
there is another phase which intimately con- 
cerns us in our Life-expression which I will, 
for want of a better term, designate as the 
Law of Compensation. In Thinking, we 
violate no Law, but the Law of Compensa- 
tion says that I shall receive as I give. If I 
send out Thoughts of envy, jealousy, malice, 
hatred or discouragement, or if I hold 
Thoughts of health, hope, success, love, hap- 
piness and good- will to all, I shall get the 
same in return. 

Everything which exists, every result ob- 
tained in any way whatever is the conse- 
quence of the operation or workings of fixed 
Laws. In the degree in which we recognize 
this fact and understand the character and 
nature of the Laws under which we live, will 
we be able to act intelligently in regulating 
our lives and in determining what shall come 
to us with more definiteness and precision. 
We will see that when we wish to produce 
some given result, that it can be attained 



212 Laws Governing 

only through the operation of certain Laws 
and the better we understand the Laws by 
which we are governed, the more sure we can 
be of the desired results. 

The one great and supreme fact of the 
universe is God, who is the creator and sus- 
tainer of all. But God works through Laws 
which He has established and He expects us 
to recognize the existence of these Laws and 
place ourselves in harmony with them. 
Compliance with Law means infinite good 
to us, while violation brings us suffering and 
disappointment. The secret of intelligent 
living involves a knowledge of God and an 
understanding of His Laws, and a knowl- 
edge of His Laws involves a knowledge of 
all that enters into Life — the things which 
we have been considering in previous chap- 
ters. 

We must remember that all Laws are op- 
erative whether we recognize them or not 
and that it is through ignorance or wilful- 
ness that we reap undesirable results, while 
a knowledge and right understanding of 



in Every Sfhere. 213 

these Laws enables us to live and act in har- 
mony with them and govern in their appli- 
cation to all that concerns us. 

When we understand that what we are, 
what we do and what we shall become, as 
well as our health, happiness and our suc- 
cess are all the result or consequence of the 
operation of certain Laws, and that all Law 
is positive and imperative in its action, we 
will then see that in order to achieve anjr 
purpose or bring about any particular result 
or condition, we must place ourselves in a 
right relation to the governing Laws, we 
must live and work in harmony with them 
and utilize their operations in attaining our 
objects. We cannot change existing Law nor 
avoid the consequences of its violation, but 
we can change our own circumstances and 
conditions through employing it in the pro- 
per way. 

The transmission of Thought, its power 
of Attraction, the influence of Mind over 
Body, Suggestion, the Impressions made 
upon the Subconscious mind, together with 



214 Laws Governing 

all its activities are governed by the exact 
workings of Laws. As we grasp and realize 
this fact, we will come to see that it is only 
through a knowledge and understanding of 
these Laws that we can intelligently use or 
apply them in consciously shaping our lives, 
in determining what shall come to us and in 
controlling all Life-expression. 

Let it be remembered that he who under- 
stands the nature and workings of the Laws 
which control his existence and intelligently 
employs them in the working out of the 
problem of Life will assuredly obtain the 
most satisfactory results, if he will place 
himself in harmony with them and persist 
in his purpose. There is no question as to 
this. 

The more you understand the Laws gov- 
erning the activities of the Subconscious 
mind, the more effectively will you be able 
to control and direct them in the right direc- 
tion. You will then understand how you can 
control the character of the impressions up- 
on which it acts, whether they be conscious 



in Every Sphere. 215 

or unconscious Impressions. The better you 
understand the Law of Suggestion, the more 
effectively will you be able to apply it to 
yourself and to others. Knowledge is Power. 

Laws are constantly operative which gov- 
ern us in every phase and condition of life 
and in the degree in which we understand 
the way in which they operate and intelli- 
gently use them in our efforts to bring about 
desired results will we be able to consciously 
and rightly govern and control our circum- 
stances, environment, health, happiness and 
success. 

We cannot violate a Law with impunity. 
We must pay the penalty. Sickness and dis- 
ease is the result of the violation of Law, 
and health is the natural consequence of 
compliance with it. 

Happiness, success and the attainment of 
all good; reverses, failures, disappointment, 
unhappiness and misery are the result of the 
direct compliance with, or violation of Law, 
or the consequences of the operation of the 
Law of Compensation, and by our own 



216 Laws Governing in Every Sphere. 

choice we determine just what shall be. The 
more fully we recognize and understand the 
existence and operation of these universal 
Laws, the more clearly will we see how it is 
that in one way or another we are actually 
determining, every moment, what shall come 
to us. 

To comply with Law or place ourselves in 
harmony with it, we must have a knowledge 
and understanding of its nature and opera- 
tion. To make an intelligent application of 
the "Science and Philosophy of Life" we 
must understand and act in compliance with 
the Laws governing it. 



The— 

Secret 

Of 

True 

Attainment. 



CHAPTEK XVIII. 

To the one who is earnestly striving for 
the development of his own latent forces and 
powers and to the attainment of higher 
Ideals, I know of no two words of greater 
significance than that of "Kealization" and 
"Doing/ 5 

We all have an intellectual perception of 
knowledge and Truth which is beyond our 
actual realization. In a way, we see and 
discern the manifestations and operation of 
these Laws and Forces which we have been 
considering, and believe them, but we fail 
in that vital realization of their real import 
and application which would invest them 
with their greatest degree of power for us. 
You, my reader, will say that you realize the 
force and truth of what I am saying, but 
do yon? 

We are so prone to a mental perception of 
Truth which is lacking in realization, that I 

219 



220 The Secret of 

would press this point upon you. A Truth, 
a Law, a Principle becomes powerful and of 
value to us according to the degree of its 
realization in the Soul. Every day you will 
prove the truth of this, as I have done, if 
you are observing. 

With the vital Eealization of a thing 
comes power. It then takes a more definite 
and positive form and becomes a "Reality. To 
illustrate : When we come to actuallv realize 
that Thought is a tremendous force and 
power, and that a Thought or desire firmly 
held with persistence is bound to attract 
that which is in correspondence with.it, we 
stand in awe before the vast possibilities 
which are opened before us. But it is only 
through 'Realization that these wonderful 
'possibilities are brought home to us. A men- 
tal perception must exist first, but it is 
through acting upon these perceptions of the 
mind — through the doing, that the Eealiza- 
tion and Potency of any Truth, Law or 
Principle becomes a power to us. 

Remember — mark it well, it is only 



True Attainment. 221 

through Doing or Demonstration that vital 
Realization comes. We know through Do- 
ing, then Knowledge becomes Power and 
brings Realization with it in the degree in 
which we are observing and follow each 
proposition out to its conclusion and appli- 
cation. 

So often has the question been asked me, 
"Where is the beginning and what is the 
proper course to pursue to develop myself 
and reach to higher Attainments ?" that it is 
my desire to make this as plain as possible. 
It is interesting, and at the same time pain- 
ful as well, to note the various methods em- 
ployed to attain this end. There are numer- 
ous "courses" of instructions offered at 
prices vanning from $5.00 to $100, which 
the reader is assured will bring about the 
desired development, and the methods advo- 
cated are many. The mistake commonly 
made is in employing methods which are, in 
a sense, mechanical and which do not touch 
the foundation principles. Thousands are 
earnestly seeking light which will enable 



222 The Secret of 

them to live more intelligently. They read 
and study and yet feel that they are making 
bnt little progress — that there is something 
lacking. 

There are two things which interfere with 
and hinder the true Attainment and Devel- 
ment of the many. The first is the absence 
of a definite idea as to what constitutes true 
Development, and the second is that ever- 
present desire and fascination for the "mys- 
terious" — stronger in some than in others — 
which leads them to seek the demonstrations 
of Psychic Power in its various phases. 
Now, while this is all right in its way and 
place, it does not constitute true Develop- 
ment or Attainment and neither are these 
powers essential to it. Many possess them 
with little or no real mental or Spiritual de- 
velopment, but the one who reaches a true 
Attainment will come into the possession or 
development of all of these powers he can 
wisely use, or which are needful to him. 

True Attainment and real Development 
consists in an intelligent knowledge and un- 



True Attainment, 223 

derstanding of the Lows, Principles and 
Conditions upon which life-expression is 
founded, in understanding the way in which 
we are governed and controlled in it, and in 
knowing how we can consciously and intelli- 
gently shape life for ourselves and control 
our own circumstances, conditions and en- 
vironment — our destiny, here and hereafter. 

He who realizes that Life is no mere past- 
time, but a vital and serious problem will 
demand something practical, something that 
he can absorb and assimilate into his life. 
He wants to know how he can come into a 
more complete control and command of his 
own powers and best utilize them in his life- 
expression. Such will not be satisfied with 
mere theories, no matter how pleasing they 
may be. He wants something which can be 
proven, demonstrated and brought into 
daily practical use — something which will 
better his condition 

If you have carefully read and studied the 
foregoing pages, you will have formed some 
idea of the starting point in right living, as 



224 The Secret of 

well as of the development of your own 
forces and powers. These are the underly- 
ing principles of all Life-expression, yet 
even they are but collaterals — the effect of 
a still more potential cause, when true Spir- 
itual Attainment is considered, and if we 
would base our growth and development up- 
on a foundation which is unassailable, sure 
and firm, we must go still back of these. 

All that we have been studying, all At- 
tainment, all Development and substantial 
progress can be summed up in two words — 
Wisdom and Understanding. There are no 
two words which involve more for the good 
of humanity than these. 

If you are really desirous of a higher and 
truer Attainment, kindly take your Bible 
and turn to Proverbs, III, 13 to 26, but es- 
pecially verses 13 to 19. A careful study of 
these few verses will disclose the fact that 
in the acquirement of Wisdom and Under- 
standing, everything else is included. In 
her hands are Length of Days, Eiches and 
Honor, Health and Happiness: The Mer- 



True Attainment. 225 

chandise of it is better than the merchan- 
dise of Silver, and the Gain thereof better 
than fine gold. She is more Precious than 
rubies, and all things thou canst desire are 
not to be compared with her. Her Ways are 
Ways of Pleasantness and all her Paths are 
Peace. The Lord by wisdom hath founded 
the earth, and by Understanding, He estab- 
lished the Heavens. Trnly, Happy is the 
man that findeth Wisdom and the man that 
getteth Understanding 

Ponder over the foregoing paragraph my 
reader, and see if yon do not discover for 
yourself a new Principle or starting-point in 
life. A vital realization of what is involved 
in this would cause many to cease their mad 
rush hither and thither after all sorts of 
Psychic phenomena, their inordinate desire 
for communication with "departed spirits" 
and their quest after "power," "Psychic Vi- 
brations" and various will-o'-the-wisps. 
They would discover that these things are of 
minor importance and that there is but little 
in them which will admit of practical use- 
is 



226 The Secret of 

fulness or application in real Attainment 
and Development. Psychic power has its 
place and value, but it should never, simply 
for its own sake, be made an object. You 
will grow into it and will possess all that is 
needful for you through the process of true 
development, and it will come natural and 
without forcing. 

One of the first steps towards real and 
substantial Attainment, is the understand- 
ing and Realization, and the practical appli- 
cation of the great fact that Life-expression 
is the product of our Thoughts and that 
through right Thinking we can change our 
circumstances, conditions and environment, 
our failures, our unhappiness and ill-health 
to a great extent, if not entirely, at will. All 
acts and all Attainment spring from 
Thought, hence the necessity of attending 
first of all to this, one of the fundamental 
factors in the phenomena of life. 

A little reflection will show us clearly that 
the quality of our Purpose, our Thought and 
our Desire, our Success in all our undertak- 



True Attainment. 227 

ings, and our true Development and Attain- 
ment in any and all directions, are all de- 
pendent upon the degree of Wisdom and Un- 
derstanding which we possess. This is the 
foundation upon which we must build, for 
no other will stand the crucial test nor can 
we in any other way attain to the highest de- 
velopment of the best that is within us. 

In our acts, and in all that we do, every- 
thing depends upon the Wisdom and Under- 
standing which we possess. Everything de- 
pends upon what we know, as we act, meas- 
ure and judge everything from the vantage 
ground of our Understanding. 

As all growth is by degrees, so is Attain- 
ment. We unfold, as it were, little by little, 
just as the full-blown rose comes from the 
green bud, breaking apart sheath after 
sheath until it can express its full beauty 
and fragrance, so it is in our Attainment 
and Development: we unfold and the inner 
life expands into expression by degrees, in 
order that we may more fully comprehend 
and understand every step of the way. 



228 The Secret of True Attainment. 

The real secret of true Attainment may 
be stated in a very few words. It lies in the 
acquirement of Wisdom and Understanding 
and in their application. We must not only 
Know, but we must Do and in the Doing we 
shall always Know the more. 



Little 

Friendly 

Talk. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

Do you, my reader, my friend, Realize 
that Life is just what you make it ? Do you 
begin to realize your own responsibility in 
shaping, not alone your own life, but that of 
others as well? Do you realize the wonder- 
ful power — the wonderful resources which 
are at your command if you will but reach 
out and take them? Do you realize that 
you can be what you will to be? — that you 
can determine what shall come to you ? 

Think not that these things are mere fan- 
cies or theories. Do not cast then aside with 
a passing Thought, but open yourself to 
them, absorb them, live them and you will 
soon realize their potency and power. Open 
yourself to the light of Truth and allow it to 
shine in upon yt ur own Soul. 

In what I have written, I have in the 
main, drawn from my own experience and 
have given you facts which I have demon- 

231 



232 A Little 

strated and proven, but I feel that my words 
are inadequate to convey the depth of mean- 
ing underlying the Principles and Truths 
which I have stated. I wish it were within 
my power in some way to impress upon you 
the Vital Eeality as well as the great im- 
portance of these things and help you to 
shape your life more intelligent^, to attain 
to a higher Spiritual Development, to great- 
er Success and greater Happiness. I wish 
I could in some way imbue you with the 
same deep sense of Eealization that has come 
to me in writing these pages. 

But all growth and development is by de- 
grees and we must be prepared for a Truth 
before we can receive it. If a Truth is pre- 
sented to us before we are prepared for it, 
we do not see it. How often have you read 
a paragraph in a book without having your 
attention especially attracted to it, but on 
re-reading it another time have discovered a 
Truth or meaning which appealed strongly 
to you ! This is true of all. Our eyes are 
"holden" until we grow up to, or are pre- 



Friendly Talk. 233 

pared for a Truth, then we can See, Realize 
and Appropriate it for ourselves. 

Each time you go over these propositions 
you will get more light and will perceive 
things whjeh at first ma}' not have been clear 
to you. The scope of your mental perception 
is broadening and the understanding or Re- 
alization of one point or Truth, helps you 
to see and understand another. 

I have endeavored to make all as clear as 
possible without going into details. You 
will not find everything "spelled out," but 
to the contrary brevity has been the rule and 
it is for you to study and follow each propo- 
sition out to its conclusion yourself. In this 
way you will derive the greatest help. Do 
not allow others to do your Thinking for 
} t ou. Do not accept a thing simply because 
I have said it, buc "try" it, reason it out, 
apply it, prove and investigate all things for 
yourself. 

Many people are Mentally Lazy. They 
find it much easier, and less of an 
effort to allow others to do their 



234 A Little 

Thinking for them than to arouse their 
own dormant faculties and do the work 
themselves, but it is always the Thinker, the 
Reasoner, the Investigator who penetrates 
the true "inwardness" of things and reaps 
the richest results, therefore resolve to start 
in now and Think and Act for yourself and 
in thus doing, direct the current of your life 
yourself, instead of allowing others to do it 
for you. 

Be observing. Xote the occurrences of 
each day, analyze them, reason from cause to 
effect and from effect to cause and you will 
find constant demonstrations of the Laws 
and Principles which I have been trying to 
make clear to you. 

Remember, real Attainment and Develop- 
ment comes through the acquirement of Wis- 
dom and Understanding. Do not be misled 
into seeking the development of "Psychic 
power" but occupy yourself first of all with 
that which will establish you on a firm foun- 
dation and enable you to govern and control 
your own life — the practical things, and you 



Friendly Talk. 235 

will find your advancement more substantial 
and at the same time rapid. You can do 
any thing that another can if you know what 
he knows, therefore yon see that real Attain- 
ment lies in the acquirement of Wisdom and 
Understanding. 

Do not be concerned about what others 
are doing so much as in doing yourself. You 
must stand upon your own foundation, 
which you must build, for in the degree in 
which you lean upon another, in that degree 
are you weak. Develop your own forces and 
powers, learn how to use them to the best 
advantage, stand at the helm — be master of 
the situation. 

You can attract to yourself all that is 
beautiful, noble and true if you set yourself 
about it. You can draw to yourself Love 
and good-will from all, but you do this by 
first assuming that mental attitude yourself, 
for remember, you receive the same as you 
send — like attracts like. If you want others 
to Love you, love them. If you wish others 
to see good in yourself, see good in them. 



236 A Little 

There is good in everyone, if you can get to 
it, but sometimes it requires patient and 
persistent effort to bring it to the front. 

To make life beautiful, you must culti- 
vate the garden of your own Soul. Grow 
there all the beautiful things you can think 
of, and you will soon find Thought express- 
ing itself in action and attracting to itself 
that which is in harmony and correspond- 
ence with it. Bear in mind that the exter- 
nal is but the expression of that which is 
within and the face is a true index to the 
heart, if you can read. 

We must begin with ourselves if we 
would beautify our lives and make them pro- 
ductive of good. Don ? t commence apply- 
ing these things to others the first thing, 
but let others alone for the time being. Ap- 
ply the workings of these Laws and Prin- 
ciples to yourself — to your own life, and you 
will find that as you develop strength of 
character and a positive attitude, you will 
be influencing others to a surprising degree. 
The very Thoughts and Principles you live 



Friendly Talk. 237 

will affect and influence them and yon will 
find yonrself doing good without knowing it. 

Bnt do good for its own sake — just for the 
sake of doing good and not that yon may 
receive recognition. It is trne that we re- 
ceive as we give bnt this should not be our 
motive of action. It is "more blessed to give 
than to receive" and in doing good we re- 
ceive good ourselves, though not of neces- 
sity from those whom we have served. Act 
from Principle and maintain the conscious- 
ness of right doing, unobserved and un- 
known. 

In no way can we do more to make life 
beautiful, noble and pure — in no way can we 
contribute more to a truly Successful life, 
than through the development of the higher 
faculties and attributes of the Soul. All of 
the good m Life-expression comes through 
this source and in the degree in which we 
cultivate these higher &nd more transcend- 
ent powers and attributes of the Spiritual 
man and allow them to expand, do we ex- 
press in our lives the highest ideals and come 



238 A Little 

to discern more clearly the promptings of 
that voice within — intuition. 

Have an object — a purpose before you 
which is worthy of your greatest and best 
efforts. Here is where many fail. While 
possessing ambition in a degree, but having 
no definite purpose or fixed object in view, 
they are to a greater or less extent drifting 
with the tide with a feeling of helplessness. 
A definite object or purpose in life is a ne- 
cessity and is a wonderful incentive to Do, 
and especially is this so when reinforced by 
that Wisdom and Knowledge which enables 
us to realize that we can Do that which we 
really desire to do, for be it remembered, the 
desire would not be there unless there were 
also the ability to perform. 

If you are one who has been in any meas- 
ure "drifting," without a center, purpose or 
object before you, call a halt now, take a 
candid and just inventory of your resources, 
measure your own abilities, your tastes, de- 
sires and ambitions, learn what would har- 
monize with your nature, what would be 



Friendly Talk. 239 

congenial to yon and what wonld enlist all 
your energies and enthusiasm, and then ap- 
ply yourself in that direction. Thousands 
of men go through life out of place simply 
because they do not study their natural 
adaptabilities, drifting into anything that 
presents an opening and never really succes- 
ful. Study yourself well and do not jump 
to any hasty conclusions, be deliberate as 
well as candid with yourself, and when you 
have fixed your purpose and determined 
what you wish to do, hold to that purpose 
with that dogged and steadfast persistency 
which knows no such thing as fail, knowing 
that you can Do that which you will to Do, 
and you will shortly find yourself possessed 
of a growing confidence in your own ability 
and will see things changing and shaping 
themselves in correspondence with your 
Thoughts, your Desires and your Purposes. 
But do not allow seeming failure to dis- 
courage you. Difficulties and trying circum- 
stances meet us to be overcome and they not 
only serve to develop our greater strength, 



240 A Little 

but they afford us the opportunity of prov- 
ing our power r.ver them and of demonstrat- 
ing the fact that we can surmount any ob- 
stacle or difficulty which comes to us, in one 
way or another. This is true. It is no mere 
theory. You don't hnov) what you can Bo, 
or what you are capable of, until you try and 
if you never try you will never know. Re- 
member, the only way to do a thing is to be- 
gin and Do it. 

I have had the pleasure of treating a 
young man of twenty-five for mental and 
moral defects in his character who could 
only say "I cant." This was the one thought 
of his life. He constantly affirmed that he 
could not do anything, that he never had 
amounted to anything and that he was sure 
that he never could accomplish anything or 
make a man of himself. He was completely 
discouraged and as devoid of apparent possi- 
bilities as any one can be and live, and in- 
deed he confessed that he had been tempted 
to throw himself into the sea more than once. 
He could not apply himself to anything and 



Friendly Talk. 241 

he never was known to stick to a thing and 
finish it In everything he undertook, his 
hands would fall to his side and he would 
say "I cam." 

A prominent Clergyman who brought him 
to me for treatment remarked that in all his 
experience, he had never met with such an 
extreme case of mental degeneracy. At the 
end of two weeks treatment, the young man 
informed me with all the confidence and as- 
surance in the world that he was "all right" 
and could "stand alone." He said, "before, 
I thought I could not do anything, but now 
I know that I can, because I have done it." 
He knows that he can do what he wills to do, 
and he is demonstrating this every day. He 
knows that the same force, energy and de- 
termination which enabled him to do the 
things he has done, will enable him to do 
others. He is now full of energy and ambi- 
tion and is thoroughly self-reliant. He re- 
spects himself and is therefore commanding 
the confidence and respect of others. He is 



242 A Little 

making a man of himself and will succeed 
even beyond his present expectations. 

This extreme case simply demonstrates 
the fact that through Learning and Doing, 
you can accomplish anything which you will 
to do, providing it is within the range of 
your intelligence or ability, for remember, 
the only limitations placed upon you are the 
limitations of your Knowledge and Faith. 
You cannot really "will" to do that which 
is beyond what is possible to you. 

It is for you to say what your life shall be. 
It is for you to say whether you shall be a 
success or a failure, whether or not you will 
go along with the great mass of humanity 
who are eking out an existence, with but 
little ambition for higher achievements, in 
ignorance of the forces and power which is 
lying dormant within' them, and who think 
they cannot do anything but what they are 
doing. You can climb the ladder of Attain- 
ment as high as you will, if you but begin 
and Do. 

Draw the line on the past now and deter- 



Friendly Talk. 243 

mine that you will live to higher Ideals — to 
the best that is within you, with a definite 
and fixed purpose which you are determined 
to accomplish. Study well to understand 
the Science and Philosophy of true living 
and then apply it in the working out of your 
own ideals and you will succeed in the de- 
gree in which you Learn, Know and Do. 

"When shall we win? — 

Why, when we fire 
Straight to the mark and never tire ; 
When we hold fast, as we've begun, 
And still work on till all is done/' 



Parting. 




And now, again, I grasp your hand in 
parting and leave yon with my very best 
wishes for yonr highest attainment in the 
development of the best that is in you and 
for a fuller and deeper Eealization of the 
grandeur of Life as it is expressed through 
the transcendent faculties of the Soul, and 
if the sincere wish of my heart is granted, 
the fruits of my small efforts will be made 
manifest, not alone in the life which we 
must live here, but in that never-ending 
Eternity of life where all is holiness, love, 
happiness, harmony and joy. 

My sole aim and desire has been to help 
you to a better understanding of the great 
underlying principles of life which would 
enable you to live more intelligently and 
make your life more beautiful, more noble 



and more successful in the highest sense of 
the word, and the degree in which I am suc- 
cessful in this will measure the degree of 
the satisfaction aiid compensation I shall 
derive from my work. 

If you are one who has attained to a 
greater Wisdom, Knowledge and Under- 
standing than I, and need no help which I 
can give, then accept my very best wishes 
and God-speed for your still further ad- 
vancement, with the earnestness and sincer- 
ity with which they are given. 

If, however, you have found Life's path- 
way rugged and rough thus far, you have 
had my companionship, and it is my desire 
to help you in the same way in which I have 
helped myself. I know what difficulties and 
obstacles are, I know what it is to stumble 
and fall, though I do not know what it is to 
stay down, but I also know what it is to 
overcome difficulties and conquer obstacles, 
I know what it is to turn apparent defeat 
into victory, and failure into success. 

I have spoken from my Soul. I have writ- 
ten what I have demonstrated and proved, 



and the background of my own life and ex- 
periences has formed the canvas upon which 
the picture has been painted and it is pre- 
sented to you with the hope that it will not 
merely amuse or entertain you, but rather 
lead you to a higher conception of life, with 
its grand possibilities and stimulate you to 
higher ideals and to the grandest Attain- 
ment and Development which is possible to 
man. 

While writing, I have felt that I was in 
company with my reader, and it is with re- 
luctance that I now realize that we must 
part, but it may be but for a little time — We 
shall meet again. 

(over) 



Special — 

Announcement 

To 

The 

Reader 

Of 

This 

Book. 



To My Reader : 

With the view of keeping in touch with 
you, my reader, and of helping, as best as 
I can, the many who are seeking knowledge 
to a clearer understanding of the subjects 
which we have been considering, through 
timely articles and answering questions, I 
shall shortly commence the publication of 
the Magazine "Thoughts, New and Old," 
which will be issued periodically — probably 
quarterly for the present, and free. 

It is my desire to make this Magazine 
practical and helpful to all and as far as lier 
within my power, to spread these living 
truths among those who are as yet strangers 
to them, and to this end, I ask your co-oper- 
ation in sending me the addresses of such as 
you think will be benefitted by it. Such 
subjects will be taken up from time to time 
as having a bearing upon life as we all have 
to meet it, the development of our higher 
faculties, our health, happiness, success, etc. 



Questions which are relevant will be an- 
swered as far as is practicable and within 
the limits of the space at my command, and 
if I can be of further help to you, I shall 
be glad to hear from you. 

It is my desire to help those who need it 
and I will gladly send the Magazine to every 
reader of this book, and to those who are 
sufficiently interested in these subjects to de- 
sire it, but as this is purely a labor of love, 
and I do not wish to send it to those who are 
indifferent, I will ask you to kindly advise 
me if you wish it, writing your name and 
address plainly, and I will gladly send it tc 
you. 

Remember, there is no charge for this 
whatever — it is yours for the asking, in ex- 
change for your appreciation, and I shall be 
pleased to send it to you if you wish it. 
Cordially yours, 

EDWARD H. COWLES, 

Portland Institute of Psychology, ' 
June 1, 1903. Portland, Ore. 



PERFECT UNION. 



As tiny raindrops meet and coalesce, 

And each forgets its own identity 

In thinking of its happy destiny, 
The other's tender presence to possess ; 
So sonls may meet, and in their gentleness, 

And love forget the I and My and Me, 

In thinking of the Thon and Thy and Thee. 

And as the drops together onward flow, 
To slip at last into the shining sea ; 
So these two, heart to heart, may onward go 

Into the ocean of eternity. 
One with each other here in truth and love, 
One with each other, one with God above. 

—Isabel, Richey. 



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